Hither 

and 
Thither 


II  1 

■I 

^MiHnlilllllllllll 
Itilllill  1 II  111 

lllllllll 

Hither  and  Thither 


A  COLLECTION  OF  COMMENTS  ON 
BOOKS    AND     BOOKISH     MATTERS 


JOHN   THOMSON 

Librarian  of  The  Free  Library  of  Philadelphia 


PHILADELPHIA 

GEORGE  W.  JACOBS  &  CO. 

PUBLISHERS 


Preface. 


My  work  as  a  Librarian  has  given  me  an  opportunity  to 
examine  a  large  number  of  books,  many  of  them  rare  and 
curious,  and  others  of  a  general  or  of  a  special  interest. 
From  time  to  time  I  have  published  various  comments 
upon  some  of  these  volumes,  and  I  am  indebted  to  the 
editors  of  the  Philadelphia  Ledger,  Press,  Inquirer, 
Record,  Optimist,  and  others,  for  their  kind  permission  to 
reprint  some  of  the  articles  which  have  appeared  in  those 
papers  during  the  past  ten  years.  To  these  articles  I  have 
added  some  which  have  not  hitherto  appeared  in  print.  The 
facts  which  I  have  recorded  may  possibly  be  of  use  to 
those  who  have  occasion  to  use  reference  books  in  public 
libraries,  and  if,  in  addition,  this  volume  shall  prove  to  be 
of  service  to  members  of  the  Library  Profession,  I  shall  be 
amply  repaid  for  the  labor — very  pleasant  in  itself — in- 
curred in  its  production. 

I  am  especially  indebted  to  my  son,  O.  R.  Howard 
Thomson,  for  the  Index,  which  he  has  kindly  prepared. 


Contents. 


PAGE 

The  Ten  Lost  Tkibes 3 

The  Master  of  the  Rolls  Series 13 

Early  Chronicles    31 

Botany  and  Block-Books 41 

British  Essayists   53 

A  Few  Art  Treasures 65 

A  Polyglot  Psalter 73 

Children's  Literature    77 

The  Hammurabi  Code 89 

Saint  Mark's,  Venice 97 

Haverford  College   107 

Dr.  Sommer's  "Le  Morte  Darthur" 115 

Sevres  Porcelain 127 

Liturgical  Manuscripts 135 

Six  "Greatest"  Books — 

I.     "Of  the  Imitation  of  Christ" 147 

II.     "The  Pilgrim's  Progress" 150 

III.  "The  Adventures  of  Robinson  Crusoe".  .155 

IV.  "Don  Quixote"   161 

V.     "Utopia"    166 

VI.     Franklin's  "Autobiography" 173 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Fac-Similes  of  the  Manuscripts  of  Tacitus 179 

Fac-Similes  of  Portions  of  the  Works  of  Ter- 
ence, the  Poet  and  Dramatist 185 

The  Text  of  the  Bible 191 

Mexican  Antiquities 209 

The  Nuttall  Codex 221 

The  Breviary  of  Cardinal  Grimani 227 

Saint  Margaret's  Book  of  the  Gospels 233 

Visiting  Cards    239 

Horse-Shoes    219 

Mourning   261 

Friday 275 

Fables 287 

Palestrina's  Music 305 

Alexandre  Dumas 311 

"Of  the  Imitation  of  Christ"  :  Who  Wrote  It  ?.  .323 

History  Repeats  Itself 325 

A  Plea  for  Free  Libraries 339 

The  Value  of  Reading  Fiction 315 

Earnestness  a  Necessity  for  Permanence 357 


The  Ten  Lost  Tribes. 


The  Ten  Lost  Tribes. 


IT  is  somewhat  difficult  to  know  whether  to  treat  seri- 
ously four  "Studies"  of  "Our  Race,"1  aggregating 
one  thousand  and  fourteen  pages  in  eight  volumes, 
published  by  Chas.  A.  L.  Totten,  first  lieutenant,  Fourth 
Artillery,  IT.  S.  A.,  or  to  regard  them  with  a  feeling 
kindred  to  that  experienced  by  most  readers  on  a  perusal 
of  the  various  "relations"  of  Swedenborg's,  or  an  exam- 
ination of  the  wild  vagaries  of  William  Blake.  Pos- 
sibly, at  some  not  very  distant  date  collectors  may  be  found 
who  will  value  these  volumes  when  discovered  in  their 
"original  paper  covers,"  unbound  and  uncut,  as  highly  as 
present  bibliophiles  esteem  numbers  of  the  French  roman- 
ticists in  their  original  "cheap  and  nasty"  paper 
covers.  In  speaking  of  the  story  of  "Our  Race,"  as  told 
by  Mr.  Totten,  there  is  no  necessity  to  follow  the  custom  of 
novelists,  who  reserve  the  conclusion  of  the  plot,  till  anxiety 
makes  an  over-excited  and  impatient  reader  peep  at  the  last 
few  pages  to  see  how  it  all  ends.     We  may,  without  impro- 

1  Our  Race.  Its  Origin  and  Destiny.  A  series  of  Studies  on  the 
Saxon  Riddle.  New  Haven  :  Our  Race  Publishing  Company,  1891. 
(4  parts  12mo). 


HITHER    AND    THITHER. 


priety,  take  the  conclusion  for  our  starting  point  and  then 
leisurely  pick  up  for  recital  such  points  as  seem  of  interest. 

The  Anglo-Saxons  are  the-ten  lost  tribes  of  Israel.  This 
Mr.  Totten  and  "The  Saxon  Identity  Association  of 
"America"  have  ascertained  and  will  preach,  whether  we 
bear  or  whether  we  forbear.  The  case  is  proved  by  piling 
together  a  mass  of  figures,  which  in  amount  would  almost 
equal  those  used  in  an  astronomical  calculation  in  connec- 
tion with  a  transit  of  Venus ;  interspersed  with  a  series  of 
quoted  texts  from  the  Bible,  rivalling  in  number  those  in  a 
three-volume  work  by  Canon  Farrar.  In  support  of  his 
position,  the  author  indulges  in  an  analysis  of  a  multitude 
of  points  found  in  histories  of  Egypt,  ancient  America, 
the  Aztecs  and  Ireland ;  which,  together  with  a  large  num- 
ber of  overlooked — but  as  it  turns  out,  "vastly  important" 
— nursery  rhymes  have  been  ascertained  to  embody  the 
original  teachings  of  prophets  such  as  Jeremiah ;  and  to 
have  retained  in  their  popular  but  somewhat  quaint  lan- 
guage the  revelations  of  the  Almighty  as  first  disclosed  in 
prophesy,  but  filtered  down  as  centuries  passed  on,  to  the 
level  of  the  apprehension  of  our  latter  day  investigators, 
in  striking,  but  decidedly  popular  forms. 

The  points  made  by  Mr.  Totten,  so  far  as  an  ordinary 
reader  can  follow  them,  seem  to  be  somewhat  as  follows : 
All  men  are  now  ready  not  to  be  surprised  at  anything, 
and  intense  expectancy  wraps  a  waiting  world ;  whence  it- 
follows,  that  we  may  learn  without  surprise  that  when 
Frederick  III.,  of  Austria,  invented  his  boastful,  national 
formula,  A.  E.  I.  0.  U.  (Austria  Est  Imperare  Orbi 
Universo),  which,   being  interpreted,   is  that  Austria   is 


TIIE    TEX    LOST    TRTP.TCS.  5 

designed  to  rule  the  world  universal,  he  miscarried,  as 
the  motto  should  have  rend  A.  E.  I.  0.  U.  Y.  (Anglia  Est 
Imperare  Orbi  Oniverso  YisraelaB).  This  corrects  Fred- 
erick, and  asserts,  "as  the  truth  is,"  it  is  for  the  Anglo- 
[sraelites  to  dominate  the  universe;  and  it  also  solves  the 
mystery  which  surrounds  the  fortunes  of  the  lost  ten  tribes 
of  Israel  who  ever  since  1721  B.  0.,  the  date  of  their  final 
deportation  into  Media,  have  remained  hidden  and  undis- 
coverable.  The  theories  that  have  hitherto  found  favor 
with  various  writers  on  "Unfulfilled  Prophecy"  are  all 
brushed  on  one  side,  while  the  idea  that  the  Jews  are  the 
Jews,  and  nobody  else,  is  scouted.  Contrariwise  Mr. 
Totten  and  his  co-thinkers  are  satisfied  that  the  Jews  whom 
we  know  and  recognize  as  such,  are  descendants  of  Judah, 
but  that  the  bulk  of  their  nation,  the  descendants  of  Israel, 
exist  in  a  separate  form,  who  after  the  reign  of  Zedekiah 
betook  themselves  to  Ireland,  "a  place  provided  by  Jere- 
"miah"  from  whence  they  worked  their  way  via  Scotland 
down  to  London,  in  which  place  all  the  tribes  gathered 
themselves  under  the  title  of  the  Heptarchy,  or  "if 
"Manasseh  is  included,"  the  Octarchy.  Of  these  tribes, 
seven  apparently  remained  in  Great  Britain  and  are  now 
John  Bull ;  whilst  the  eighth,  as  Brother  Jonathan,  ran 
"over  the  wall,"  or,  as  it  is  explained,  went  to  America,  so 
that  England  and  America  between  them  share  the  privi- 
lege of  being  the  missing  tribes. 

These  ''facts"  are  proved  because  the  Bible  says, 
texts  being  quoted  in  confirmation  of  the  assertion,  that 
Israel  must  be  a  Sabbath-keeping  race,  and  no  countries 
but  England  and  the  United  States  meet  this  requirement; 


6  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

but,  more  conclusively,  Israel  must  have  a  State  Church, 
which  Britain  has,  and  Manasseh  has  not.  The  meaning 
of  the  name  Manasseh,  "who  makes  to  forget,"  is  signifi- 
cant, yet  America  does  what  is  next  best,  "recog- 
nizes religion,"  for  argues  Mr.  Totten,  though  it 
is  often  claimed  "that  God  is  not  mentioned  in 
"the  Constitution,"  yet  the  very  ratification  of  that 
document  "in  the  year  of  our  Lord,"  etc.,  is  "a  tacit  refuta- 
tion" of  the  statement.  Moreover,  Israel  was  directed  to 
write  the  Commandments  on  the  walls  of  their  national 
church,  and  it  is  urged  that  this  custom  was  undoubtedly 
followed  in  the  eighteenth  century  in  a  large  number  of  the 
Church -warden-ruled  churches  of  England,  but  not  in 
"Catholic  or  Continental  churches."  Lastly,  or  rather 
pre-eminently,  the  Israelites  must  be  addicted  to  the  vice  of 
drunkenness,  for  so  Isaiah  had  described  them,  and  as 
Mr.  Totten  points  out,  the  Saxons  "drink  like  a  fish."  In 
all  the  author  enumerates  sixty-eight  "identities,"  but  as 
he  found,  our  space  "simply  fails  to  prosecute  this  subject 
"further."  The  point  that  has  been  overlooked  by  general 
students  of  history  is  that  Zedekiah's  daughter  Tea  Tephi, 
the  sole  surviving  lineal  descendant  of  David,  settled  down 
at  Tara,  having  carried  thither  the  "wonderful  stone" 
which  traveled  from  Tara  to  Dunstaffnage,  from  DunstafT- 
nage  to  Scone,  and  from  Scone  to  London,  where  it  was 
fitted  in  the  Coronation  Chair,  still  extant  in  Westminster 
Abbey;  whereon  the  sovereigns  of  England,  down  to  and 
inclusive  of  King  Edward  VII.,  have  been  seated  at  their 
coronations.  These  truths  are  much  enhanced  in  value, 
when  we  call  to  mind  that  we  find  the  harp  in    Ireland 


THE    TEX    LOST    TRTTIKS.  7 

ringing  in  the  halls  of  Tara,  as  proved  by  Tom  Moore's 
well-known  poem,  and  that  the  cockney  is  still  pursued  by 
the  stumbling  of  Ephraim's  tongue  over  the  letter  H — 
"shibboleth"  is  still  a  stumblor  in  the  mouth  of  every 
Londoner  born  within  the  sound  of  Bow-bells. 

The  full  name  of  "'our  heroine/'  as  the  daughter  of 
Zedekiali  is  styled  in  these  volumes,  was  Tea  Tephi, 
familiarly  signifying  Tender  Twig;  and  on  the  proof  that 
she  went  to  Ireland  and  from  Tara  came  forth,  in  the 
manner  above  indicated,  rests  the  whole  superstructure  oil 
these  studies.  It  is  claimed  that  Irish  chronicles  are 
redundant  with  references  to  Jeremiah,  for  firstly,  not  only 
has  his  bust  a  place  of  honor  upon  Dublin's  Capitol ;  but 
secondly,  his  grave  has  been  shown  from  time  immemorial 
in  the  Isle  of  Davenish,  Lough  Erne;  and  thirdly,  a  wide- 
spread tradition  exists  that  the  gigantic  individual  who 
built  the  Giant's  Causeway 

Fin  McCool  went  to  school 
With  the  prophet  Jeremiah! 

And  a  well-known  Irish  couplet  tells  us 

There's  not  a  hut  the  Isle  around 
But  where  a  Jerry  may  be  found. 

It  was  from  the  great  veneration  for  the  Queen  Tea 
Tephi  herself,  who  became  "the  Queen  of  the  Welsh  as  well 
"as  of  the  Irish,'"  that  the  Welsh  as  a  people  became  known 
as  Taphs  or  Taffies,  and  the  way  in  which  Judah's 
monarchy  vanished  is  preserved  in  the  poem, 


b  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

Taffie  was  a  Welshman 

Taffie  was  a  thief; 
Taffie  came  to  my  house 

Arid  stole  my  piece  of  beef. 

I  went  to  Taffie's  house 

But  Taffie  wasn't  home, 
For  Taffie  was  at  my  house 

And  stole  my  marrow  bone. 

It  is  pointed  out  that  the  sobriquet  Taffie  is  "usually 
"derived"  from  David,  or,  in  the  Hebrew,  beloved.  Tephi, 
the  beloved,  was  herself  the  daughter  of  David,  so  becom- 
ing the  very  beloved  of  the  beloved,  she  was  in  very  sooth 
the  "marrow  bone"  or  last  hope  of  the  kingdom,  or  as  one 
may  say,  "beef"  of  Ephraim ;  that  is  to  say,  of  "a  heifer," 
or  in  other  words,  of  the  ten  lost  tribes.  From  this  close 
reasoning  we  pass  on  to  quote  two  "final  proofs  deduced 
"from  folk-lore."  First,  the  story  of  "Jack  and  Jill," 
which  exactly  illustrates  the  successive  fates  which  befell 
the  crowns  of  Israel  and  Judah ;  and  second,  if  further 
evidence  is  needed,  the  story  of  "Jack  Horner."  The 
very  gist  and  philosophy  of  Israel's  present  favored  circum- 
stances among  the  nations  of  the  earth,  is  condensed,  as  it 
were,  into  a  nutshell,  in  the  well-known  rhyme ; — 

Little  Jack  Horner 
Sat  in  the  corner 

Eating  a  Christmas  pie; 
He  put  in  his  thumb, 
And  drew  out  a  plum, 

Saying,  what  a  big  boy  am  I  ! 

Texts  are  given  in  Mr.   Totten's  pages  to  justify  the 
adjective  "little"  and  the  concealed  identity  of  the  Anglo- 


THE    TEN    LOST    TT5TBES.  9 

Saxon  race  in  the  name  "Jack  Horner,"  and  to  prove,  as 
promised  in  the  Bible,  that  Israel  is  to  be  called  in  Isaac's 
name,  which  finally  came  to  be  recognized  as  being  the 
same  word  as  Saxon.  The  line  "sat  in  a  corner"  distinctly 
refers  to  the  Angle-land,  or  in  French,  Angle-terre,  the 
Corner  Land,  as  is  verified  by  nine  quoted  and  other 
nnqnoted  texts,  which  are  set  ont  in  a  note.  That  no 
nation  "does  or  can  keep  Christmastide  as  Saxons  do," 
lends  a  vim  to  the  forcible  line  "eating  a  Christmas  pie;" 
and,  as  it  is  a  simple  truism  that  the  ''hand  is  an  emblem  of 
"might  and  the  thumb  is  the  strength  thereof,"  the  pru- 
dence of  the  folklorist  in  recording  that  Jack  Horner  "put 
"'in  hi*  thumb,"  almost  necessarily  leads  to  the  conclusion 
that  he  "drew  ont  a  plum,"  even  did  not  Mr.  Totten  find  an 
appropriate  text  in  St.  Matthew's  Gospel,  beside  two  texts 
in  the  first  book  of  Samuel,  a  fourth  in  the  second  book  of 
Samuel  and  yet  a  fifth  in  the  first  book  of  Chronicles,  which 
all  confirm  the  statement  made  in  the  rhyme.  The  use  of 
the  word  "big"  in  the  last  line  is  apologized  for.  It  is 
contracted  from  beichog,  beichiwag,  burdened,  loaded, 
"pregnant ;"  as  Webster  says,  "Pregnant  as  with  something 
"portentous;"  and  while  its  ancient  meaning  was  full  of 
"Josephetic  signification,"  as  shown  in  several  quoted 
texts,  it  is  only  in  these  latter  times  that  it  has  obtained 
"a  baser  value."  Should  any  link  in  the  above  chain  of 
deductions  break  down,  a  connecting  link  may  be  picked 
up  through  Hamutal,  "who  seems  to  have  been  the 
"prophet's  only  child ;"  and  with  reference  to  whom 
"sufficient  data"  exist  to  show  that  she  intermarried 
with    the    Kings    of    Denmark,    who  will  be  found    in 


10  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

time,  to  be  male  descendants  of  David  himself.  Two  out- 
looks are  therefore  offered ;  one  in  the  Danish  line  and  tho 
other  in  Queen  Victoria's  grandchild,  popularly  known  as 
the  "Duff  Princess,"  whereby  the  victory  to  our  race,  as 
promised  by  "this  Ra !  this  Ra  !  of  Tara,"  may  be  secured 
to  the  Anglo-Saxon  people  when  one  hundred  and  fifty- 
three  shall  have  sat  on  the  throne  seat  of  our  rulers. 
Inasmuch  as  Queen  Victoria  was  the  one  hundred  and 
fiftieth  descendant  in  the  direct  line  from  Adam,  therefore 
her  little  granddaughter,  above  mentioned,  "is  the  one 
"hundred  and  fifty-third,"  and  probably  last  of  the  "Great 
"Fishes"  to  be  gathered  into  the  net  (see  the  last  chapter 
of  the  Gospel  according  to  St.  John).  With  her  reign, 
when  it  comes  to  pass,  great  things  may  be  looked  for. 
One  thing  alone  seems  quite  clear  from  these  studies,  that 
the  best  that  can  be  done  is  to  wait  in  patience  for  further 
developments. 

The  author  mentions  that  three  and  one-half  years  were 
consumed  in  a  pilgrimage  with  his  manuscripts  from  pub- 
lishing house  to  publishing  house;  and  that  his  series  of 
studies  had  been  successively  offered  to,  and  more  or  less 
promptly  been  rejected  by,  many  houses,  ten  of  which  are 
named,  including  the  Century  Co.,  Messrs.  Harpers, 
Messrs.  Porter  &  Coates,  Scribners,  and  Cassells;  but  he 
himself  has  printed  them,  and  "living  or  dead,  he  will 
"calmly  await  the  issue." 


The  Master  of  the  Rolls  Series. 


The  Master  of  the  Rolls  Series. 


In  advocating  a  knowledge  of  the  two  hundred  and  fifty 
odd  volumes  forming  the  ''Roll  Series,"1  I  am  by  no  means 
advising  a  study  of  new  books,  and  in  no  sense  would 
these  be  the  newest  of  books  to  most  readers.  They 
might,  in  one  sense,  almost  be  called  "Incunabula,"  except 
for  the  reason  that  their  printing  is  recent.  They  are  a 
series  of  chronicles  and  memorials,  the  latter  comprising 
letters,  poems,  and  similar  literary  products  embrac- 
ing the  period  from  the  earliest  time  of  British  history 
down  to  the  end  of  the  reign  of  Henry  VII. ,  or  about  the 
year  1500.  They  are  published  under  the  direction  of 
the  Master  of  the  Rolls,  (a  Judge  of  the  Court  of  Chan- 
cery, England,)  as  a  national  undertaking.  The  issue  was 
proposed  as  long  since  a«  1822 ;  but  it  was  not  until  1857 
that  the  Master  of  the  Rolls  obtained  the  sanction  of  the 
Treasury  to  the  proposal. 

These  books  can  never  be  of  general  use  to  any  but  spe- 
cial students,  until  a  descriptive  catalogue,  or  catalogue 

1  The  Chronicles  and  Memorials  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  dur- 
ing the  Middle  Ages  ;  published  by  the  authority  of  the  Lords  Com 
missioners  of  Her  Majesty's  Treasury,  under  the  direction  of  the  Mas- 
ter of  the  Rolls.     London,  1858,  etc. 

13 


14  HITHEE    AND    THITHEE. 

raisonne,  with  a  complete  subject  and  biographical  index 
is  prepared.  Many  of  them  relate  to  abbeys;  many 
are  like  John  Capgrave's  Chronicle,  and  profess  to 
give  the  history  of  the  world  from  the  time  of  Adam  to 
the  date  on  which  the  chronicle  was  written.  With  a  para- 
graphical index  to  these,  we  could  find  out  what  each  of 
these  books  contains  upon  any  particular  point.  Now  it 
is  a  matter  of  grave  research.  By  way  of  instance,  take  a 
book,  popularly  known,  such  as  the  "Nuremberg  Chroni- 
cle," and  consider  how  impossible  it  is  to  find  out  what  it 
contains  on  any  one  particular  matter  for  want  of  indexes.1 

The  works  in  the  "Master  of  the  Rolls  Series,"  being 
selected  and  issued  in  no  chronological  order,  the  catalogue 
and  index  I  advocate  becomes,  therefore,  still  more  neces- 
sary. 

Unfortunately,  no  translation  of  any  treatise  in  Latin 
has  been  given,  although  it  was  ordered  that  translations 
of  any  language  but  Latin,  such  as  French,  Anglo-Saxon  or 
Norman  French,  might  be  given.  This  defect  has  been 
partially  overcome  by  means  of  elaborate  introductions 
giving  an  outline  of  these  works,  under  the  title  of  "Intro- 
eductions,"  accompanied  by  glossaries  of  the  more  unusual 
mediaeval  and  low-Latin  words.  To  those  who  have  dipped 
pretty  freely  into  these  volumes,  a  confident  appeal  can  be 
made  to  confirm  the  statement,  that  there  is  as  much 
interesting  matter  to  be  found  in  a  large  num- 
ber of  these  volumes  as  there  is  in  some  of  the 
best  known  and  most  widely  read  biographical  and 
historical  books. 

1  Though  the  Chronicle  has  what  is  termed  an  index,  alphabetically 
arranged,  it  is  practically  nothing  more  than  a  table  of  contents. 


THE    MASTER    OF    THE    ROLLS    SERIES.  15 

I  do  not  mean  to  say  that  there  are  no  uninteresting 

volumes;  but,  if  the  Introductions  had  been  printed  as 
important  articles  in  the  leading  magazines,  there  is  hardly 
one  that  would  not  have  met  with  perusal  and  approval 
from  a  very  large  number  of  general  readers.  The  reviews 
of  these  volumes  in  the  principal  literary  magazines  like 
The  Atlicna-um,  The  Spectator,  etc.,  enable  persons  to  form 
some  idea  of  their  valuable  contents ;  and  it  will  be  noticed 
that  hundreds  of  references  to  these  volumes  are  made  in 
the  "authorities"  quoted,  at  the  end  of  the  principal  arti- 
cles in  "The  Dictionary  of  National  Biography,"  showing 
the  importance  and  value  of  the  manuscripts  rescued  from 
oblivion  by  this  important  work  of  the  British  Government. 

Works  of  this  class  are  of  comparatively  small  value 
where  general  indexes  do  not  appear.  Of  what  use  would 
Notes  and  Queries  be  but  for  the  general  index  to  each 
series  of  twelve  volumes?  And  en  passant,  how  much 
better  it  would  be  if  these  numerous  indexes  of  each 
twelve  volumes  were  incorporated  into  one? 

How  seriously  are  the  "Jahrbiicher"  of  the  Berlin  and 
Austrian  national  libraries  handicapped,  by  the  want  of 
general  indexes !  However,  till  the  day  comes  when  Lord 
Campbell's  threatened  punishment  shall  be  inflicted,  we 
can  only  "hope"  for  better  things.  Lord  Campbell,  in  a 
judgment  on  some  copyright  matters,  stated  that,  if  he 
had  his  will,  any  publisher  who  published  a  book  without 
a  proper  index  should  go  without  any  payment  for  his 
volumes,  and  the  editor  should  be  imprisoned.  This 
would,  of  course,  have  been  drastic,  but  would,  probably, 
have  been  effective. 


16  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

Turning  to  the  books  themselves,  let  us  examine  three 
or  four,  to  see  what  knowledge  we  can  gain  of  the  condition 
of  science  in  early  days ;  to  wonder  at  the  amount  of  biblio- 
graphical knowledge  to  be  found  in  the  series ;  and  to  enjoy 
reading  about  discoveries  and  beliefs,  seriously  pro- 
pounded and  entertained,  a  thousand  years  ago. 

Take  the  case  of  Friar  Roger  Bacon,  who  lived  from 
1214 — 1292  or  1294.  Only  two  or  three  of  the  numerous 
works  of  this  very  remarkable  man  had  been  well  known 
till  Mr.  Brewer's  edition  of  the  "Inedited  Works  of 
"Bacon"1  was  commenced ;  yet,  Leland  names  thirty  and 
Bale  enumerates  eighty  different  works  written  by  this 
man  whose  erudition  earned  him  the  title  of  "Mirabilis 
"Doctor."  Bacon  was  a  Franciscan  monk  and  a  master  of 
Latin,  Greek,  Hebrew,  and  apparently  of  Arabic,  also. 
He  wrote  on  science,  mathematics,  mechanics,  optics, 
chemistry,  chronology,  physics,  and  astronomy.  His 
writings  on  geography  were  sufficiently  important  to 
be  included  by  Hakluyt  in  his  collection  of  "Voyages;" 
and  to  Bacon  has  been  attributed,  more  or  less  exclusively, 
the  invention  of  gunpowder,  the  telescope,  and  spectacles. 

As  might  be  expected  from  the  age  in  which  he  lived, 
charges  of  magic  and  an  undue  study  of  judicial  astronomy 
and  alchemy  were  brought  against  him;  and  very  serious 
were  the  labors  put  upon  him  by  Pope  Clement  IV.,  who 
required  him  to  send  to  His  Holiness  some  of  his  works. 

In  the  same  way  that  it  would  be  incredible,  if  it  were 
not  a  fact,  that  Handel  composed  his  oratorio  of  "The 

1  "Opus   Tertium,"    "Opus   Minus,"   etc.,   of   Roger   Bacon.     Edited 
by  J.  S.  Brewer,  1859.      (Rolls  Series  15.) 


THE    MASTER   OF    THE    ROLLS    SERIES.  17 

"Messiah."  within  the  period  of  a  calendar  month,  it  would 
seem  impossible  that  Bacon  should  have  prepared  and 
transcribed  for  the  Pope  within  fifteen  or  eighteen  months 
his  Opus  Ma  jus,  Opus  Minus,,  and  Opus  Tod  inn.  Such 
a  feat  is  unparalleled  in  the  annals  of  literature! 

In  the  "Dictionary  of  National  Biography,"  Professor 
Adamson  stated  that  one  of  the  most  valuable  recent 
studies  of  Bacon  is  Brewer's  "Preface"  prepared  for  this 
Series.  In  working  up  Bacon  as  a  study,  the  majority  of 
persons  would  seek  biographies  and  similar  books;  aot 
knowing  that  in  the  "Rolls  Series"  is  to  be  found,  probably, 
the  best  review  yet  written. 

According  to  popular  ideas,  Roger  Bacon  was  little  more 
than  a  dabbler  in  black-art.  He  it  was  who  discovered 
that,  if  he  could  make  a  brazen  head  to  speak  and  hear  it 
speak,  he  could  wall  around  England  with  brass  to  his 
eternal  glory.  With  the  assistance  of  a  conjurer-friar 
and  one  of  worse  origin,  Bacon  could  only  learn  it  would 
speak  "within  a  month."  Bacon  watched  for  three  weeks 
till,  worn  out,  he  sent  a  servant  to  watch  while  he  slept. 
The  image  spoke:  "Time  is,"  and  after  half-an-hours 
silence,  said:  "Time  was,"  and  after  a  second  half-hour's 
space  said :  "Time  is  past,"  and  then  exploded.  The  care- 
less servant  reviled  it  each  time  it  spoke,  and  made  merry 
with  jests ;  but  he  never  took  the  trouble  to  wake  his  master 
"for  those  few  word-,"  and  Bacon  was  "undone."1  The 
servant  was  struck  dumb  for  one  month  by  way  of  pun- 
ishment. 

Leland,  the  antiquary,  says  it  is  easier  to  collect 
the  leaves  of  the  Sybil  than  the  titles  of  the  works  written 
by  Roger  Bacon. 

2 


18  HITHEE    AND    THITHEE. 

A  mass  of  information  has  been  gathered  from  the 
works  of  Gerald  dn  Barry1 — or,  as  he  is  generally  known, 
Giraldns  Cambrensis.  He  lived  through  the  reign  of 
Henry  II.,  the  period  of  Becket's  murder,  the  conquest 
of  Ireland,  the  reign  of  Richard  I.,  the  reign  of  John, 
when  Normandy  was  lost  to  England,  and  the  beginning 
of  the  reign  of  Henry  III.  The  church  was  his  predilec- 
tion; his  father  used  to  call  him  "little  bishop."  His 
works  are  comprised  in  eight  volumes  of  the  "Rolls 
"Series;"  and  the  Gemma  Ecclesiastica,  or  "The  Jewel  of 
"the  Church,"  is  there  printed  for  the  first  time.  It  is  a 
remarkable  book,  giving  a  picture  of  the  Welsh  clergy  in 
the  thirteenth  century,  that  would  be  looked  for  elsewhere 
in  vain.  The  work  is  full  of  interesting  anecdotes ;  but,  of 
course,  many  are  quite  incredible.  He  detested  an  unedu- 
cated clergy,  and  illustrates  it  by  humorous  anecdotes — 
as  where  a  priest  promised  a  bishop  two  hundred  eggs, 
and,  giving  his  promise  in  Latin,  said  he  would  send 
"ducentas  oves"  (200  sheep),  meaning  "ducenta  ova." 
The  bishop  held  him  to  his  promise. 

In  1188,  Archbishop  Baldwin  preached  the  Crusade, 
and  the  King  sent  him  into  Wales  for  this  purpose.  The 
archbishop  produced  little  effect  till  he  bade  Giraldns  do 
the  preaching.  Then,  although  he  spoke  in  French  and 
Latin,  which  the  people  did  not  understand,  such  crowds, 
we  are  assured,  came  to  take  up  the  cross  that  the  arch- 
bishop was  almost  pressed  to  death,   and  compelled   the 

'The  Works  of  Giraldns  Cambrensis.  Vols.  [-IV,  edited  by  J.  S. 
Brewer.  Vols.  V-V1I,  edited  by  James  F.  Dimock.  Vol.  VIII, 
edited  by  George  F.  Warner.     18G1-1S91.     (Rolls  Series  21.) 


THE    MASTER    OF    THE    BOLLS    SEEIES.  19 

archdeacon  (Giraldus),  to  pause  for  a  time.    Giraldus  was 

a  remarkable  man ;  and  in  his  writings  will  be  found 
accounts  of  the  reforms  then  needed  in  the  lives  of  mem- 
bers of  the  monastic  orders.  Humorous  stories  are  told, 
as  of  the  abbot  who  wanted  more  privileges  for  his  mon- 
astery, and  entertaining  Henry  I.  unawares,  made  him 
drink  nearly  through  the  night.  When  the  abbot  was  sent 
for  on  the  following  day,  the  king  made  use  of  the  terms  of 
pledging  that  the  abbot  had  used  over  night,  and  finally 
conceded  his  wishes.  It  must  have  been  a  happy  occasion, 
but  is  probably  fictitious.  In  his  energy,  the  writer 
describes  many  of  the  Cistercian  monks  as  men  imbued 
with  groveling  propensities  of  avarice.  It  is  hard  to  think 
this  of  the  men  who  gave  to  England  Tintern,  Furness, 
Fountains  and  Xetley. 

Another  book  which  will  afford  great  interest  to  the  gen- 
eral reader  is  entitled  "Leechdoms,  Wortcunning,  and 
"Starcraft  of  Early  England."1  It  is  in  three  volumes, 
and  illustrates  the  history  of  science  in  Great  Britain 
before  the  ]STorman  Conquest.  Through  it  we  obtain  a 
curious  insight  into  the  study  and  use  of  herbs  for  the  cure 
of  so  many  addles  (or  ailments),  that  the  leeches  might 
have  said  to  their  patients  as  the  French  quack  doctors 
said  of  their  remedies — "Take  them,  ladies  and  gentlemen, 
"in  all  security!  They  can  do  you  no  harm,  and  may  do 
"you  some  good!"  There  are  many  young  and  middle- 
aged  lovers  who  would  lx'  glad  to  find  effective  the  proper- 
tics  said  to  attend   the  use  of  waterwort,  which  is  good. 

'Leechdoms  Wortcunning  and   Starcraft   of  Early   England.     Vols. 
I-III,  edited  by  T.  Oswald  Cockayne,  1864-1866.     (Rolls  Series  35.) 


20  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

we  are  told,  for  ladies  whose  beauty  is  damaged  by 
swellings,  or  for  men  whose  success  in  wooing  is 
impeded  by  their  baldness.  Orbicularis  was  found  to  be 
good  if  a  man's  hair  fell  out,  or  if  he  had  a  "disturbance 
"in  the  inwards."  By  use  of  this  remedy,  his  baldness  was 
cured  and  his  stomach-ache  relieved ;  but,  should  this  fail, 
there  was  a  Saxon  remedy  for  baldness  as  follows :  "In 
"case  that  a  man's  hair  fall  off,  take  juice  of  the  wort 
"which  one  nameth  nasturtium  and  another  names  cress, 
"put  it  on  the  nose,  and  the  hair  will  grow."  Details  are 
not  given. 

In  the  account  of  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  time, 
the  book  shows  that  the  Saxons  were  able  to  act  a  very  fair 
share  of  comfortable  food;  that  cookery  was  not  wholly 
contemptible;  and  that  they  had  an  abundance  of  fruits, 
ales,  and  beers,  home  and  foreign;  and  it  is  encouraging  to 
know  that  at  that  time  they  had  feather-beds  with  bolsters 
and  pillows.  It  is  undoubtedly  true  that  there  was  a 
vast  deal  of  superstition  mixed  up  with  the  remedies  that 
were  proposed  for  various  troubles.  Thus,  for  "flying 
"venom,"  the  sufferer  was  directed  on  some  Friday  to 
churn  butter  not  mingled  with  water  and  sing  over  it  nine 
times  a  litany,  nine  times  the  Paternoster,  and  nine  times 
an  incantation,  quoted  and  said  to  be  Gaelic,  but  which  is, 
undoubtedly,  gibberish.  For  certain  illnesses  or  addle-, 
after  Credos,  Paternosters  and  Psalms,  finally  the  leech 
and  the  sick  man  were  required  to  sip  thrice  of  the  drink. 
I[<>w  much  improved  many  <>f  the  medicines  given  to-day 
would  be  if  our  doctors  were  compelled  to  drink  thrice 
with  us  !    How  nice  black  draughts  would  taste  thereafter ! 


THE    MASTER    OF    THE    ROLLS    SEKIES.  21 

A  wonderful  recipe  for  the  cure  of  a  lunatic  practically 
continued  in  English  madhouses  from  that  date  until  long 
after  George  III.,  was  king.  The  remedy  was  to  take  the 
skin  of  a  mere-swine  or  a  porpoise,  work  it  into  a  whip, 
swinge  the  man  therewith,  and  "soon  he  will  be  well. 
"Amen  !"  Smile  as  we  may  at  these  prescriptions,  in  days 
to  come,  probably  there  will  be  equally  small  respect  for 
some  of  the  remedies  much  applauded  and  approved  at 
the  present,  day. 

A  cursory  reference  should  be  here  made,  to  a  volume 
entitled  the  "Chronicle  of  the  Abbey  of  Evesham  ;'n  for, 
undoubtedly,  from  that  book  and  one  or  two  of  similar 
purport,  a  remarkable  insight  has  been  gained  into  the 
daily  life  and  occupations  of  that  and  similar  great  institu- 
tions. It  must  never  be  overlooked,  in  reading  these  books, 
that  there  is  a  great  distinction  between  the  different  kinds 
of  monks.  The  majority  of  the  monks  of  that  period,  had 
to  attend  to  the  temporal  matters  of  the  monasteries,  and 
were  not.  priests  and  not  concerned  with  the  carrying  on  of 
religious  offices  of  the  Church ;  so  that  many  of  the  doings, 
sayings  and  habits  of  monks,  which,  from  the  satires  of  sar- 
castic writers,  have  been  heaped  upon  the  members  of 
the  orders,  are  due  only  to  the  members  of  the  secu- 
lar orders.  Secular  monks  who  had  to  look  after 
the  property  and  attend  to  the  provisioning  of  the  monas- 
teries, often  incurred  the  hostility  of  the  nobles  and  feudal 
authorities  in  the  same  neighborhood;  but.  the  generous 
defense  of  the  poor  villeins  and   others,   shown   by   these 

^'hronicon  Abbatise  Eveshamensis.  Edited  by  W.  D.  Macray, 
1803.      (Rolls  Series  29.) 


22  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

monks  in  times  of  distress,  won  for  them  much  popular 
love  and  a  generous  overlooking  of  many  complaints  which 
were  alleged — sometimes  with  great  justice,  but  more  fre- 
quently from  the  bitterness  of  one  order  against  another, 
or  one  monastery  against  a  rival  institution. 

Evesham  had  great  periods  of  trouble,  and  has  almost 
entirely  vanished  from  existence.  The  abbey  church,  with 
its  sixteen  altars,  its  one  hundred  and  sixty-four  gilded 
pillars,  and  the  chapter-house,  library,  cloisters,  refectory, 
dormitory,  buttery,  and  accommodation  for  eighty-nine 
religious  inmates,  with  sixty-five  servants,  were,  with  few 
exceptions,  ruins  even  in  the  time  of  Shakespeare.  The 
sudden  and  violent  dissolution  of  an  important  abbey  like 
this  must  have  produced  great  wretchedness  on  the  poor 
and  industrious  inhabitants  who  surrounded  the  buildings. 
To  have  its  principal  revenues  seized  by  a  despot,  was  a 
poor  exchange  for  the  work  the  religious  house  had  accom- 
plished. There  was  no  town  of  Evesham  before  the  foun- 
dation of  the  abbey.  The  benevolence  of  the  religious 
house  was  systematic  and  uniform.  While  the  abbey  stood, 
there  was  an  annual  disbursement  there,  which  has  been 
computed  to  be  equal  to  £80,000  of  present  English  money. 
More  than  one  hundred  and  fifty  inmates  of  the  monastery 
were  turned  loose  on  the  world;  and  half  the  population  of 
the  town  of  Evesham  was  reduced  to  grave  distress  upon  its 
abolition. 

It  is  interesting  to  study  this  chronicle  and  see  what 
was  being  done,  and  how  that  which  was  done  was  accom- 
plished.     Tn    The    Contemporary    Review*    there   is   an 

1  Contemporary  Review,  Vol.  V,  1867,  page  304  et  seq.,  by  George 
G.  Perry. 


TIIR    MASTEE    OF    TIIK    ROLLS    SEBIES.  23 

account  of  the  "Troubles  of  a  Mediaeval  Monastery," 
which  makes  interesting  reading;  especially  as  its  writer 
takes  a  hostile  view  of  the  benefits  of  the  monastery, 
and  thinks  that  abolition  was  brought  on  by  its  own 
actions.  Having  obtained  a  view  of  both  sides  of  the  ques- 
tion, turn  again  to  the  chronicle  itself,  and  then  judge 
whether  those,  who  regard  the  suppression  of  the  monas- 
teries by  Henry  VTIL,  and  the  manner  in  which  it  was 
done,  as  one  of  the  most  serious  wrongs  accomplished  by 
even  that  remarkable  King,  are  not  justified  in  coming  to 
that  conclusion. 

The  chronicle  is  almost  biographical.  It  gives  the  his- 
tory of  the  institution  from  690  to  1418,  makes  us 
acquainted  with  the  inner  daily  life  of  this  abbey,  and  is 
interspersed  with  many  notices  of  general,  personal  and 
local  history. 

Another  of  the  most  interesting  of  all  the  volumes  is  a 
prose  work  by  Alexander  Xeckam  and  a  poem  by  the 
same  author.1  It  is  necessary  only  to  call  attention  to  the 
prose  work  on  the  natures  of  things — ''De  Xaturis 
"Reram."  This  work  was  written  about  six  hundred  and 
fifty  years  ago,  and  is  here-and-there  on  the  same  lines  as 
Pliny's  "Natural  History,"  but  more  amusing. 

Xeckam  suffered  a  good  deal  from  puns  made  on  his 
name,  some  calling  him  Xequam  (or  wicked)  ;  and  at  that 
period,  apparently,  "qu"  in  Latin  was  pronounced  as  "k," 
so  when  he  applied  for  admission  to  the  order  of  the  Cis- 
tercians, he  asked  in  Latin  if  he  might  come,  to  which  a 

^lexandri  Xeckam  de  Naturia  Rerum  libri  duo;  with  Neckam'a 
Poem,  Dp  Laudibus  Divinse  Sapientiae.  Edited  by  Thomas  Wright, 
1863.      (Rolls  Series  34.) 


24  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

Latin  answer  was  sent,  saying:  "If  yon  are  good,  yon  may 
"come,  bnt  if  you  are  Nequam  (wicked)  neqnaqnam !" 
which  could  be  very  freely  translated  at  the  present  day 
"nixie."  He  was  so  much  offended  that  he  joined  another 
order. 

This  edition  of  his  works  illustrates  again  the  necessity 
for  a  general  index.  To  make  the  best  use  of  the  volume 
under  discussion,  a  reader  would  have  to  consult,  the  Deeds 
of  the  Abbots  of  the  monastery  of  Saint  Alban,1  the  Annals 
of  Tewkesbury,2  the  Annals  of  Dunstable,3  the  Annals  of 
Worcester  Monastery,4  and  Hardy's  Catalogue,5  all  in 
the  "Rolls  Series."  Xeckam  states  his  object  to  havo 
been  to  collect  a  quantity  of  known  facts,  and  to  treat 
of  them  morally.  He  draws  a  moral  from  every  fact 
of  natural  history — some  much  more  extended  than,  and 
many  of  them  as  queer  as,  the  morals  of  xEsop's  "Fables." 
He  carries  the  method  of  finding  meanings  in  words,  which 
was  so  popular  in  mediaeval  writings,  to  an  extreme  degree. 

He  finds,  for  instance,  that  "cadaver,"  the  Latin  for  a 
corpse,  is  really  a  gathering  together  of  the  first  syllables 
of  three  other  Latin  words — "caro,"  "data,"  "vermibus," 
these  three  words  meaning  "flesh  given  to  worms ;"  hence, 
cadaver  is  a  corpse,  to  which  explanation  are  appended 
various  morals. 

The  construction  of  the  book  itself,  is  very  curious.    The 

1  Chronica  Monasterii  S.  Albani.  Vols.  I-VII,  edited  bv  Henrv 
Thomas  Riley,  1803-1870.      (Rolls  Series  28.) 

23*Annales  Monastic!.  Vols.  I-V,  edited  by  Henrv  Richards 
Luard,  1804-1809.      (Rolls  Series  30.) 

5  Descriptive  Catalogue  of  Manuscripts,  Relating  to  the  History  of 
Great  Britain  and  Ireland.  Vols.  I-1II,  by  Thomas  Duffus  Hardy, 
1802-1871.      (Rolls  Series  20.) 


THE    MASTER   OF    THE    BOLLS    SERIES.  25 

first  part,  the  bulk  of  the  work,  consists  of  a  "Manual  of 
"Science,"  as  same  was  then  known,  and  which  undoubt- 
edly might  be  designated  after  the  dictum  "Science  falsely 

"so-called.1'  However,  it  was  the  best  they  knew,  and  no 
doubt,  was  as  valuable  in  the  eyes  of  those  who  then  lived, 
as  is  much  of  the  science  of  the  present  day;  the  outcome 
of  which,  in  the  eyes  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth  many 
years  hence,  may  be  regarded  with  considerable  amuse- 
ment. 

In  Neckam  is  found  the  earliest  allusion  we  have  to  the 
popular  legend  of  the  "man-in-the-moon."  There  is  a  pretty 
nearly  contemporaneous  mention  of  it  in  an  old  English 
song  edited  for  the  Percy  Society,  and  printed  by  Ritson. 
This  legend  is  introduced  by  Neckam  after  a  long*  series 
of  his  own  speculations  on  the  spots  on  the  moon.  !Neckam 
adds  moralizations  that  God  has  placed  spots  on  the  moon 
that,  as  the  celestial  body  nearest  to  the  earth,  it  might  be 
a  sign  to  man  that  he  also,  retains  spots  in  his  nature, 
contracted  from  the  "prevarication  in  our  first  parents." 

He  excels  Pliny  on  the  anecdotical  side.  He  says  the 
wren,  though  the  smallest  of  birds,  is  called  the  Regulus, 
or  King  of  Birds,  because  when  the  birds  assembled  to 
choose  a  king,  it  was  agreed  that  the  throne  should  be  given 
to  the  bird  which  mounted  highest  towards  Heaven.  The 
wren  hid  itself  beneath  the  wing  of  an  eagle,  and  when  (he 
eagle,  far  above  all  birds,  made  its  claim  to  the  prize,  the 
wren  started  from  its  hiding-place,  perched  on  the  eagle's 
head,  and  claimed  to  1m?  the  highest  and  therefore,  the 
winner. 

In   our  favorite  oyster,   Xeckam  finds   an   emblem   of 


26  HITIIEU    AND    THITHER. 

monastic  life.  Within  the  shell,  it  is  safe ;  when  it  opens 
the  shell,  it  becomes  a  prey  to  the  crab  and  its  other 
enemies ;  therefore,  it  is  conclusive  that  a  monk  is  safe 
while  he  stops  at  home  within  the  walls  of  his  convent,  but 
if  he  goes  out,  he  is  exposed  to  all  the  snares  of  the  Evil 
One. 

Imitation  of  good  things  is  desirable,  but  imitation  may 
be  carried  too  far.  An  ape  imitated  a  shoemaker,  and 
every  day,  as  soon  as  the  shoemaker  went  from  his  stool, 
the  ape  took  his  tools  and  made  havoc  with  the  leather  and 
strings  by  trying  to  imitate  the  shoemaker.  The  shoe- 
maker finally  took  a  knife  and  repeatedly  drew  the  broad 
back  across  his  throat,  and  then  sharpened  the  other  side 
to  a  razor-like  degree.  When  he  went  to  dinner,  the 
ape  commenced  with  drawing  the  knife  across  his  throat, 
and  imitation  proved  destruction. 

Sir  Edward  Jones  and  others  have  written  elaborate 
articles  as  to  the  origin  of  chess.  If  these  learned  writers 
had  looked  to  Xeckam,  they  would  have  ascertained  that 
the  game  was  invented  by  Ulysses. 

A  dog  is  a  faithful  creature.  A  mediaeval  British 
sailor  had  a  dog  so  faithful,  that  he  learned  to  manage  the 
ropes  with  Ins  mouth  at  the  orders  of  his  master,  and  once 
saved  him  in  time  of  great  peril. 

Among  his  stories,  we  are  told  that  the  hawk  seizes  the 
first  piece  of  warm  plumage  on  which  it  can  lay  claw,  lies 
on  it  all  night,  and  in  return  for  its  service  refrains  from 
breakfasting  on  it  in  the  morning. 

In  many  things,  says  Roger  Bacon,  writing  on  iSTeckam, 


THE    MASTER    OF    THE    ROLLS    SERIES.  27 

he  wrote  what  was  true  and  useful.     He  neither  lias  noi 
ought  to  have  any  title  to  be  reckoned  an  authority. 

Many  funny  things  in  this  series  are  apt  to  he  overlooked 
for  want  of  indexes — for  instance;  the  letters  of  some 
Spanish  ambassadors,  who  were  sent  to  examine  and  report 
on  the  features  of  a  proposed  queen  to  one  of  the  kings, 
but  whose  description  of  the  length  of  her  nose  made  the 
king  resolve  that  he  would  have  none  of  her. 

Pecock's  Repressor1  gives  a  mass  of  information  as  to  the 
Lollards,  otherwise  unprocurable;  and  if  information  is 
desired  about  Becket,  the  Series  contains  seven  volumes,2 
elaborately  and  carefully  edited,  entirely  superseding  the 
eight  volumes  edited  by  Dr.  J.  A.  Giles,  and  published  in 
the  Bohn  edition.  But  here  again,  much  information  about 
Becket,  not  in  these  seven  volumes  is  given  in  Magnussons 
elaborate  preface  to  Thomas  Saga,3  as  well  as  in  the  vol- 
umes of  Gervase  of  Canterbury4  and  Ralph  de  Diceto.5 

1  The  Repressor  of  over  much  Blaming  of  the  Clergy.  By  Reginald 
Pecock.  Vols.  MI,  edited  by  Churchill  Babington,  1860.  (Rolls 
Series  19.) 

2  Materials  for  the  History  of  Thomas  Becket.  Vols.  I-VI,  edited 
by  James  Craigie  Robinson;  Vol.  VII,  edited  by  Joseph  Brigstocke 
Sheppard,  1875-1885.      (Rolls  Series  G7.) 

3  Thomas  Saga  Erkibyskups.  A  life  of  Archbishop  Thomas  Becket 
in  Icelandic.  Vols.  I-II,  edited  with  English  translation,  notes  and 
glossary  by  M.  Eirikr  Magnusson,  1875-1884.     (Rolls  Series  65). 

4  Historical  Works  of  Gervase  of  Canterburv.  Vols.  1-11,  edited 
by  William  Stubbs,  1879-1880.      (Rolls  Series  73.) 

5  Radulfi.  de  Diceto  Decani  Lundoniensis  Opera  Historica.  Vols. 
I-II,  edited  by  William  Stubbs,  1876.      (Rolls  Series  68.) 


Early   Chronicles. 


Early  Chronicles. 


THE  larger  and  the  move  rapidly  a  public  library 
grows,  the  more  difficult  it  is  for  onlookers  to 
apprehend,  how  much  it  is  used  and  in  what 
multitudes  of  ways  it  serves  to  educate  and  promote  the 
well-being  of  the  citizens,  in  whose  midst  it  is  placed.  To 
persons  who  frequently  traverse  a  thickly-wooded  district, 
many  and  various  paths  rapidly  become  more  and  more 
familiar;  but  the  more  numerous  the  paths,  the  more  diffi- 
cult it  is  for  a  stranger  to  find  his  way  through  the  ramifi- 
cations of  the  forest,  So  it  is  with  a  library.  It  is  a 
thickly-packed  series  of  book-shelves,  and  the  volumes, 
from  their  very  numbers,  compel  persons  to  make  a  careful 
study  of  the  collections,  or  to  altogether  fail  in  making 
the  best* use  of  the  lines  of  books,  arranged  for  the  promo- 
tion of  knowledge  and  the  enjoyment  of  the  thousands  who 
desire  to  consult  them. 

The  history  of  the  creation  and  the  development  of  the 
Free  Library  of  Philadelphia,  has  been  told  in  its  <>\vn 
annual  reports,  and  through  the  courtesy  of  the  press  has 
been  related  t<>  general  readers  in  many  ways.     It  has  had 

31 


32  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

a  very  rapid  growth.  It  is  little  more  than  ten  years  old ; 
but  already  there  are  in  the  Free  Library  itself  and  ita 
branches,  nearly  two  hundred  and  seventy  thousand  vol- 
umes, access  to  which  is  free  to  every  citizen.  The  far 
greater  number  of  these  volumes  can  be  taken  out  of  the 
library  buildings  for  home  perusal.  The  others  can  be 
consulted  during  twelve  hours  of  every  day,  by  all  persons 
who  desire  to  do  so. 

Representatives  of  every  class  in  life ;  members  of  every 
profession ;  students,  book  worms  and  mere  seekers  foi 
amusement,  daily  visit  the  Library,  and  find  on  the  open 
shelves  books  on  whatever  topic  they  desire  information. 

From  1,500,000  to  2,000,000  volumes  are  taken  out  each 
year  by  readers,  and  of  these  a  vast  majority  have  a  justi- 
fication for  perusal.  One  may  be  a  hard-headed  volume  on 
penology,  but  the  moving  cause  for  taking  up  such  a  study 
may  have  been  the  novel,  Marcus  Clarke's  "His  Natural 
"Life,"  detailing,  the  frightful  story  of  Van  Diemen's 
Land,  when  it  was  reduced  to  a  hell  upon  earth  by  the  mis- 
doings of  a  few  men,  "drcst  in  a  little  brief  authority," 
and  the  need  for  the  work  done  by  Mrs.  Fry  and  those  who 
labored  in  the  British  Parliament,  for  the  amelioration  of 
prison  conditions. 

The  perusal  of  a  book  of  fiction,  which  should  rather  be 
called  a  sociological  study,  frequently  results  in  important 
subjects  being  studied  seriously.  It  is  a  hundred  to  one 
that  the  person  taking  out  either  or  both  Robert  Buchanan's 
"Shadow  of  the  Sword,"  and  Hugo's  "Les  Miserables," 
will  become  more  or  less  a  student  of  Napoleoniana.  The 
effect  of  Napoleon's  ambition  and  of  his  conscriptions,  as 


EARLY    CHRONICLES.  33 

told  in  the  one,  and  the  story  of  Waterloo,  as  told  in  the 
other,  set  persons  to  thinking,  and  put  them  on  the  road  to 
a  good  course  of  reading. 

Just  as  soon  as  theatre  bills  announce  the  produc- 
tion of  some  play  presenting  historical  characters,  or 
founded  on  historical  events — for  instance,  "Charlotte 
"Corday,"  "Robespierre"  or  "Michael  Strogoff" — just  so 
soon  is  there  a  great  demand  for  biographies  of  the  persons 
made  the  subjects  of  the  plays,  or  for  books  relating  to  the 
history  of  the  country  or  the  period  brought  into  relief. 

These  are  some  of  the  lines  of  books,  or  paths  in  the 
forest  of  literature,  which  are  very  easily  explained  and 
understood ;  but  let  us  consider  rather,  the  lines  of  study, 
amusement  and  useful  knowledge,  which  can  be  pursued 
by  any  who  will  accept  a  little  help  from  those  working  in 
libraries,  and  so  ascertain  what  mass  of  material  lies  at 
their  disposal. 

How  is  a  history  written  ?  We  read  a  history  of  this 
country  or  of  that  country,  but  does  it  occur  to  us  to  ask 
whence  the  writer  got  his  facts  ?  It  is  quite  evident  that 
there  must  be  a  great  difference  between  annalists  and  his- 
torians. The  former,  as  their  very  title  designates,  are 
recorders  of  dry  facts,  without  comments  or  generaliza- 
tions. A  historian  records  events,  with  running  com- 
ments on  incidents  which  induced  the  events,  and  on  the 
consequences  of  such  events.  There  are  in  every  large 
library  hundreds  of  volumes  of  this  character.  The  vol- 
umes technically  called  Chronicles  were  simply  Annals. 
The  writers  gathered  together  an  unconnected  chronologi- 
cal series  of  events,  having  no  connection  with  the  inci- 


34  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

dents  preceding  or  following  each.  It  is  by  browsing 
among  the  reprints  of  these  ancient  records,  that  a  truer 
insight  is  gained  into  the  everyday  life  and  habits  of  our 
ancestors,  than  from  any  other  source. 

Long  ago  a  series  of  these  volumes,  to  which  atten- 
tion is  called  in  detail  in  the  preceding  article,  was  under- 
taken and  still  continues  to  appear  periodically,  some  two 
hundred  and  fifty  volumes  having  been  issued  under  the 
general  title  "The  Chronicles  and  Memorials  of  Great 
"Britain  and  Ireland  during  the  Middle  Ages/'  edited  by 
able  scholars  and  persons,  selected  for  their  special  ability 
to  edit  such  records  of  past  times. 

The  majority  of  the  old  manuscripts  are  in  Latin, 
others  are  in  Norman-French  and  Irish;  but  with  each  is 
given,  by  way  of  preface,  a  full  synopsis  or  outline  of  the 
work,  so  that,  whether  the  reader  can  follow  the  original 
or  not,  the  whole  is  laid  out  clearly  for  his  information  in 
these  prefaces,  which  often  cover  from  three  to  four 
hundred  pages.  Where  they  are  in  anything  but  the  old 
monastic  Latin,  in  addition  to  these  prefaces  a  translation 
accompanies  the  reproduction  of  the  original.  Readers  can 
therefore  gain  an  insight  into  the  daily  lives  of  the  monk- 
ish writers  and  the  inhabitants  of  the  monasteries  of  a 
bygone  time,  as  clear  and  specific  as  they  would  by  reading 
an  account  from  a  good  correspondent,  of  some  home  in 
which  their  interests  and  affections  were  centered.  Take, 
for  instance,  the  chronicles  of  the  Monastery  of  Melsa,1 
from  1150  to  1406.     This  abbey  of  Meaux  was  a  Cister- 

1  Chronica  Monasterii  de  Melsa  ab  anno  1150  usque  ad  annum  1406. 
Vols.  I-III,  edited  by  Edward  Augustus  Bond,  1866-1868.  (Rolls 
Series  43.) 


EARLY    CHRONICLES.  35 

cian  house,  and  "the  work  of  its  Abbot  is  a  faithful  and 
"often  minute  record  of  the  establishment  of  a  religious 
"community,  of  its  progress  in  forming  an  ample  revenue, 
"its  struggles  to  maintain  its  acquisitions  and  of  its  rela- 
tions to  the  governing  institutions  of  the  country." 

The  volume  comprising  the  "Fasciculi,"1  or  "small 
"packet,"  of  Wyclif  gives  the  only  contemporaneous  account 
of  the  rise  of  the  Lollards. 

We  all  know  the  story  of  the  three  spinning  women  in 
Grimm's  "Fairy  Tales,"  and  the  general  mediaeval  version 
of  three  mysterious  visitants,  spreading  a  table  for  three  to 
bring  good  luck  to  children  born  in  that  house.  The 
monks  of  the  Abbey  of  Evesham  in  their  Chronicle2  trace 
the  origin  of  their  house  to  a  vision  of  three  beautiful 
maidens  in  heavenly  garments,  singing  sweetly.  They 
were  seen  by  a  swineherd  in  a  forest,  who  reported  their 
appearance  to  the  Bishop,  who  was  favored  with  the  same 
vision  and  founded  the  monastery  on  the  spot  where  the 
maidens  had  appeared.  The  device  on  the  Abbey  seal  rep- 
resents the  vision. 

There  are  many  versions  of  this  incident,  notably  in  a 
poem  on  the  miracles  of  St.  Swithin,  and  of  course,  in  the 
three  weird  sisters  of  "Macbeth." 

One  of  Anstey's  most  popular  novels,  "The  Tinted 
"Venus,"  is  nothing  more  than  an  elaboration  of  one  of  the 

1  Fasciculi  Zizaniorum  Magistri  Johannia  Wyclif  cum  Tritieo. 
Ascribed  to  Thomas  Netter.  Edited  by  W.  W.  Shirley,  1858.  (Rolls 
Series  5.) 

2Chronicon  Abbatiae  Eveshamensis.  Edited  by  W.  D.  Macray, 
1863.    (Rolls  Series  29.) 


36  HITHER    AND    THITHEE. 

stories  or  legends  taken  from  these  old  Chronicles,1 
modified  in  its  tone  to  suit  a  nineteenth  century  audience. 
In  the  Chronicles,  however,  the  story  is  told  as  veracious 
history. 

The  way  in  which  many  of  these  Chronicles  were  com- 
piled is  curious.  The  "habit  of  putting  together  Annals 
"began  to  be  formed  very  early."  Many  of  the  chroniclers 
were  exceedingly  credulous.  They  gave  funny,  rather 
than  reasonable,  explanations  in  matters,  such  for  instance, 
as  to  how  places  acquired  names.  That  given  in  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  Chronicle  of  the  origin  of  the  name  Portsmouth2 
is  a  case  in  point,  as  also  is  the  alleged  origin  of  the  name 
of  the  Isle  of  Wight.3  The  method  of  compilation  seems 
to  have  been  for  a  Chronicler  to  take  some  existing  manu- 
script and  add  to  it  or  correct  it,  according  to  what  he 
deemed  better  information,  and  then  continue  it  by  a 
record  of  all  such  local  or  personal  matters  as  were  within 
his  special  knowledge. 

Recollecting  that  monasteries  were  the  great  resting 
places  of  travellers  and  that  in  early  days  news  traveled 
slowly,  it  was  but  natural  that  visitors  bringing  news  of 
other  countries  and  localities  should  be  keenly  welcomed 
at  tables  where  monotony  was  apt  to  prevail;  and  what 
could  be  more  natural,  than  that  the  writer  or  annalist  of 
each  particular  religious  house,  should  gather  in  and 
record  all  the  news  that  he  could  ? 

1  Scot ifli ronicon;  William  of  Malmesbury ;    Roger  of  Wendover  and 
Matthew  of  Westminster. 

2  Anglo  Saxon  Chronicle — 501  A.  D. 
'Anglo  Saxon  Chronicle — 449  A.  D. 


EARLY    CHRONICLES.  37 

In  the  volumes  of  Matthew  Paris,1  as  in  many  others, 
additional  pleasure  is  given  by  the  incorporation  of  a  large 
number  of  facsimiles  of  the  early  manuscripts,  beautifully 
executed  and  of  great  general  interest.  Much  attention 
has  been  directed  to  many  of  these  Chronicles  by  the  series 
translated  and  published  in  the  ever-popular  Bonn's 
"Antiquarian  Library,"  and  for  a  general  reader  these  are 
of  great  value  and  undoubtedly  of  much  interest.  It  has 
been  said :  "It  is  better  to  read  in  ancient  times  than  about 
"them ;  so  it  is  better  to  read  ancient  writers  themselves, 
"even  though  you  have  to  read  translations  only,  rather 
"than  to  read  only  about  them." 

Even  at  the  risk  of  repeating  an  oft-told  story,  it  may  be 
well  to  mention  the  "Nuremberg  Chronicle."  This  was 
published  in  1493.  It  is  a  handsome  folio,  and  on  the  first 
leaf  is  a.  prefix,  styling  it  a  chronicle  of  events  from  the 
beginning  of  the  world,  with  figures  (or  portraits)  and 
illustrations.  Dibdin  devoted  twenty-six  folio  pages  to  a 
description  of  this  book.2  "It  is  a  vast  work,"  says  the 
bibliographer  Meusel,  "but  crammed  with  many  absurd 
"and  fabulous  narratives,  in  which,  however,  many 
"curious  things  can  be  discovered."  The  woodcuts  exceed 
two  thousand  two  hundred  in  number,  though  some  wood- 
cuts do  service  for  several  persons,  one  portrait  serving  to 
represent  Suetonius,  Julius  Africanus,  Venerable  Bede, 
Hugo   de   St.   Victor,   St.   Bernard,   Alexander  of  Aries, 

1  Matthaei  Parisiensis  Historia    Anglorum,    Historia    Minor.     Vols. 
I-I1I,  edited  by  Frederick  Madden.  18G6-18C9.      (Rolls  Series  44.) 
Matthaei  Parisiensis  Monachi  Saneti  Albani,  Chronica  Majora.     Vols. 
I- VII,  edited  by  Henry  Richards  Luard,  1S72-1S84.     (Rolls  Series  57.) 

2  Bibliotheca  Spenceriana.     Vol.  Ill,  p.  255,  etc. 


38  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

John  of  Monte  Villa  and  John  Gerson.  In  this  Chron- 
icle will  be  found  an  illustrated  account  of  an  old 
virago  who  was  carried  off  by  the  Devil  on  a  broom- 
stick on  account  of  her  bad  language.  This  furnished 
Southey  with  the  foundation  for  his  ballad  entitled 
"The  Old  Woman  of  Berkeley."  The  punishment  of 
some  young  men  and  maidens  who  interrupted  midnight 
Mass  by  singing  and  dancing,  and  were  compelled  to  dance 
for  a  twelve-month  uninterruptedly,  is  given  in  story  and 
picture.  Some  of  the  statements  in  the  old  Chronicles  are 
decidedly  humorous,  for  instance,  where  the  acts  of  the 
Creator  on  the  sixth  day  are  thus  stated:  "On  the  sixth 
"day  He  created  all  animal  kind  and  all  the  beasts  that 
"go  on  four  feet,  and  the  two  men,  Adam  and  Eve." 

Notwithstanding  the  bulk  of  this  great  volume,  the 
editor  stated  that  it  would  be  desirable  to  add  an  account 
of  all  the  important  subsequent  events  of  the  world,  and, 
therefore,  he  bound  up  six  blank  pages  to  meet  that  con- 
tingency. 


Botany  and  Block-Books. 


Botany  and  Block- Books. 


A  STROLLER  through  the  many  devious  paths  of  a 
great  wood  or  a  rarely-trodden  forest  has  many 
and  very  unexpected  revelations.  Paths  and 
byways  of  varied  delight  meet  him.  He  will  not  find  in 
the  forest  a  specimen  of  the  edelweiss,  but  perhaps  he  will 
run  across  a  great  mass  of  superb  gerardia,  the  extra-trop- 
ical delight  of  a  lover  of  uncultivated  wild  flowers.  Later 
he  will  bathe  his  senses  in  the  flower  delight  of  an  acre  of 
wild  hyacinths.  Each  discovery  will  furnish  him  with  a 
subject  for  special  study  and  afford  a  keen  pleasure  both 
to  his  eye  and  mind  when  he  considers  the  habits,  growths 
and  peculiarities  of  each. 

It  is  so  when  a  browser  or  student  passes  along  among 
the  varied  lines  of  books  arranged  in  a  libra ry,  like  paths 
in  a  printed  fairyland.  The  profusion  of  books  upon 
flowers,  trees  and  botany,  creates  astonishment  in  the 
reader  who  pauses  in  front  of  the  shelves,  in  a  large  library, 
devoted  to  volumes  on  these  subjects.  Possibly  on  no  sub- 
ject have  books  excelled,  in  beauty  and  in  the  ait  of  book- 
making,  those  devoted  to  floriculture.     To  many  of  these, 

41 


42  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

too,  a  curious  and  interesting  story  is  attached.  Let  a 
reader  enter  a  large  library  and  ascertain  where  books  on 
this  subject  are  placed,  and  a  revelation  awaits  him.  The 
books  on  this  topic  have  attained  to  perfection  in  form 
and  execution.  Take,  for  instance,  the  greatest  work  ever 
published  on  one  family — the  orchids. 

As  long  since  as  1886,  Mr.  II.  Sotheran,  of  London, 
commenced  the  publication  of  the  book  "Reichenbachia,"1 
devoted  to  the  illustration  and  description  of  orchids,  in 
which  he  was  assisted  by  scientific  authority.  It  was  issued 
in  forty-eight  parts,  and  the  imperial  edition,  printed  in 
atlas  folio  of  about  SG1/^  inches  by  19  inches,  was  limited 
to  an  issue  of  one  hundred  copies.  A  copy  of  this  work 
was  presented  to  the  Free  Library  of  Philadelphia  by  Mr. 
Clarence  H.  Clark,  and  is  bound  up  in  eight  volumes.  It 
has  one  hundred  and  ninety-two  splendidly-colored  illus- 
trations of  orchids,  drawn  natural  size,  accompanied 
by  descriptive  letter  press  and  where  necessary,  ana- 
lytical drawings  of  the  structural  parts  of  the  flowers. 
Some  of  the  plant  portraits  are  colored  by  lithography, 
and  others  hand-painted.  The  title  of  the  book  is  adopted 
from  the  name  of  Dr.  Reichenbach,  of  Hamburg,  "the 
"great  orchidologist,  who  devoted  his  life  to  the  study  of 
"the  orchid  family."  It  has  been  remarked  of  this  pro- 
fessor that  he  constantly  surprised  his  friends  and  "not 
"seldom  shocked  them."  He  reserved  his  greatest  sensation 
until  the  last,  "until,  in  fact,  he  certainly  could  not  enjoy 

1  Reichcnbachia;  orchids  illustrated  and  described  by  Frederick 
Sander:  1st  ser.  2  vols,  in  4;  2d  ser.  2  vols,  in  4.  London,  Sotheran, 
1886-1894.      (Imperial   Edition.) 


BOTANY    AND    BLOCK-BOOKS.  43 

"it  in  the  flesh,  and  probably  not  in  the  spirit."  He  died 
in  May,  1889,  and  his  will  was  not  only  absurd  in  itself, 
but  humiliating  to  human  nature.  His  collections,  his 
herbarium,  his  botanical  library  were  unequaled  in  the 
world.  He  was  the  foremost  expert  on  orchids.  He  had 
left  England  in  1863  in  a  huh0,  where  and  all  over  the 
world  he  was  recognized  as  the  "Orchid  King."  It  had  been 
thought  that  he  was  more  comfortable  at  Kew,  in  England, 
than  he  was  even  at  home,  but  he  was  sensitive  to  an  unbe- 
lievable degree.  To  dispute  his  dictum  was  to  place  your- 
self in  an  unforgivable  position,  and  "when  a  great  book 
"was  issued  with  only  such  reference  to  the  Orchid  King 
"as  could  not  be  avoided,  his  mind  revolted,  and  he  left 
"England  in  a  rage."  His  personal  pride  dominated  all 
his  feelings,  and  how  intensely  he  felt  the  non-recognition 
of  his  undoubtedly  pre-eminent  position  in  this  study  was 
shown  when  his  will  was  read,  by  which  he  gave  all  his 
collections  to  the  Imperial  Hof  Museum,  at  Vienna,  under 
the  condition  that  his  preserved  orchids  should  not  be 
exhibited  before  twenty-five  years  from  the  date  of  his 
death  and  until  that  time  his  collection  was  ordered  to  be 
preserved  in  sealed  cases.  It  stands  to  reason  that,  how- 
ever carefully  preserved  they  may  be,  they  will  either  be 
bonces  of  dust  when  the  twenty-five  years  have  elapsed,  or 
merely  a  collection  of  superseded  specimens  by  reason  of 
later  studies  by  newer  students. 

Leaving  aside  this  unpleasant  part  of  the  story ;  to  turn 
over  the  leaves  of  these  eight  volumes  is  a  simple  delight. 
For  a  floriculturist  they  are  a  revelation.  Those  who  have 
been  through  the  great  orchid  chambers  at  Kew  and  on 


44  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

Miss  Gould's  estate  at  Irvington  wonder,  as  they  stand 
spellbound  in  those  conservatories,  at  the  varieties  of  forms 
that  exist,  and  yet  it  is  surprising  how  small  a  part  of  the 
entire  family  has  been  gathered  together  in  these  collec- 
tions. 

Hardly  does  the  browser  turn  from  these  volumes  before 
he  is  apt  to  run  against  a  great  work  entitled  "Flora  de 
"Filipinas,"1  in  six  folio  volumes,  four  consisting  of  text, 
printed  in  Spanish  and  Latin  on  the  same  page,  and  two 
of  colored  lithographed  plates.  It  is  a  monumental  work 
of  the  highest  character,  classified  according  to  the  sexual 
system  of  Linnaeus  by  an  Augustinian,  Manuel  Blanco.  It 
was  published  at  Manila  first  in  1837,  again  in  1845, 
and  finally  a  third  time  in  1S77-1S83,  for  the  Friars  of  St. 
Augustine,  under  the  direction  of  His  Excellency,  the  late 
Sebastiano  Vidal  y  Soler,  assisted  by  two  able  botanists  of 
the  Augustinian  Order  of  Friars.  It  was  composed  from 
manuscripts  of  Fr.  Blanco,  of  that  Order,  and  the  plates 
were  drawn  and  colored  from  nature  by  native  artists. 
They  were  sent  to  Barcelona,  where  they  were  litho- 
graphed, and  after  six  hundred  copies  had  been  printed  ofr, 
the  stones  were  destroyed.  As  may  be  noticed  in  many 
cases  the  specimens  are  depicted  both  in  flower  and  in 
fruit,  necessitating  in  a  large  number  of  instances  a  gath- 
ering of  the  specimens  at  distinct  seasons  of  the  year. 

There  were  several  stoppages  during  the  printing  of 
the  work,  caused  by  a  large  fire  at  one  time  and  by  an 
earthquake  at  another,  from  both  of  which  the  printing 

1  Flora  de  Filipinas  par  el  P.  Fr.  Manuel  Blanco.  Gran  Edition. 
Manila:    Plana  y  Ca,  1877,  etc. 


BOTANY    AND    BLOCK-BOOKS.  45 

establishment  at  which  the  book  was  being  published  suf- 
fered. The  original  editor  was  Sr.  Domingo  Vidal,  who, 
unfortunately,  after  two  or  three  parts  of  the  work  had 
been  given  out,  was  obliged  to  leave  the  Philippines  on 
account  of  poor  health.  Several  months  later  he  died,  and 
his  brother,  who  assumed  the  editorship  upon  his  departure 
from  Manila,  continued  the  work  until  it  was  finished. 

It  is  not,  however,  by  the  examination  of  these  great 
works  only,  that  the  fascinating  study  of  flowers  is 
encouraged  in  a  large  library.  "Elizabeth  and  Her  Ger- 
"raan  Garden"1  has  been  supplemented  by  a  variety  of 
books,  such  as  "Judith's  Garden,"  a  story  about  flowers, 
by  Mrs,  Mary  E.  S.  Basset;  "The  Garden  of  a  Commuter's 
"Wife;2  and  the  sequel  to  "Elizabeth,"  entitled  "The 
"Solitary  Summer."3  The  special  study  of  Alpine  flowers 
in  Sutherland's  book4  on  that  subject,  many  books  by 
Darwin,  such  as  the  ones  on  climbing  plants,  orchids  fer- 
tilized by  insects,  cross  and  self-fertilization  in  the  vege- 
table kingdom,  and  Williams'  "Window  Gardening"  are 
but  a  few  of  the  many  that  will  reward  a.  reader  for 
strolling  into  and  resting  in  this  path  of  the  forest  of  liter- 
ature. 

It  is  by  no  means  necessary  to  restrict  oneself  to  the 
ahove  named  modern  books.  In  Alexander  Xeckam's 
"Natural  History,"5  as  also  in  Pliny's  "Natural  History," 

1  By  the  Grafin  von  Arnim. 
2Macmillan,  1901,  anon. 
8  By  the  Grafin  von  Arnim. 

4  Handbook  of  hardy  herbaceous  and   Alpine   flowers.     By  William 
Sutherland.     Edinburgh;    Blackwood,    L871. 

5  Alexandri    Neckam    de    Naturis     P.erum    libro    duo.      Edited    by 
Thomas  Wright,  1863.      (Rolls  Series  34.) 


46  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

will  be  found  many  dozens  of  pages  of  interesting  matter, 
showing  what  the  ancients  knew,  or  more  probably  did  not 
know  about  trees  and  flowers,  their  remedies,  their  virtues 
and  their  peculiarities. 

By  some  strange  twist  of  the  mind,  while  reading  or 
writing  of  these  books,  some  of  which  are  the  very  per- 
fection of  modern  book-making,  a  stroller  in  the  paths  of 
bookland  is  apt  to  turn  into  a  narrow,  crabbed  lane,  in 
which  he  will  come  across  some  of  the  earliest  specimens 
of  books,  thus  becoming  acquainted  with  the  greatest 
contrasts  to  the  sumptuous  modern  volumes.  In  the  pres- 
ent day  it  is  almost  impossible  to  think  of  what  the  world 
was  before  the  invention  of  printing ;  and  no  topic  is  more 
full  of  surprises  and  interest  than  the  study  of  the  begin- 
ning of  this  art. 

As  a  successor  to  the  early  impressions  of  playing  cards, 
introduced  from  the  East  about  1350,  many  specimens  of 
which  will  be  found  in  the  second  volume  of  "Die  Anfange 
"der  Druckerkunst  in  Bild  und  Schrift,"1  and  as  a  connect- 
ing link  between  manuscripts  and  books  printed  with  mov- 
able types,  there  flourished  for  a  short  period  of  ten  to 
twenty  years  a  series  of  volumes  popularly  known  as 
"Block-Books." 

They  are  books  printed  wholly  from  carved  blocks  of 
wood,  and  are  frequently  called  "Image-Books,"  having 
been  chiefly  impressed  with  images  of  saints  and  other 
historical  figures,  with  a  text  or  a  few  explanatory  lines 

1  Die  Anfange  der  Druckerkunst  in  Bild  und  Schrift  ...  in  der 
Weigel'schen  Sammlung  .  .  .  erlautert  von  T.  O.  Weigel  und  Dr. 
Ad.  Zesterniann.     Leipzig:    T.  0.  Weigel,  1866. 


BOTANY    AND    BLOCK-BOOKS.  47 

cut  in  onto  the  block.  The  text  was  carved  and  not  put 
together  with  movable  types.  There  are  possibly  nearly  a 
hundred  of  these,  though  really  only  from  ten  to  thirty  are 
properly  so  called.  The  dated  block-books  are  mainly 
between  1470  and  1480,  though  a  disputed  date  of  1440 
has  been  asserted  to  exist  on  the  "Brussels  Block-Book." 

The  method  of  production  was  as  follows :  A  block  when 
carved  was  thoroughly  wetted  with  a  thin,  watery  ink  and 
an  impression  taken  on  a  sheet  of  damp  paper  rubbed 
over  the  block  with  a  dabber  or  burnisher.  The  letter-press 
was  frequently  cut  in  imitation  of  handwriting.  As 
movable  types  became  general,  the  use  of  block-books, 
promptly  and  absolutely  died  out.  The  pictures  were  their 
all  in  all,  the  text  being  made  as  inexpensively  as  possible. 

The  four  best  known  are  the  "Ars  Moriendi,"  the  "Bib- 
"lia  Pauperum,"  the  "Apocalypticse"  and  the  "Canticum 
"Canticorum." 

The  first  edition  of  the  "Ars  Moriendi"  is  dated  1450, 
a  copy  of  which  was  purchased  by  the  British  Museum 
in  1872,  for  £1,072.10.  It  has  eleven  illustrations.  Herr 
Weigel,  from  whom  it  was  obtained,  says  "it  is  the  very 
"first  edition."  A  fac-simile  of  it  has  been  printed  by 
the  Holbein  Society,  from  the  copy  in  the  British  Museum, 
with  an  introduction  by  Mr.  George  Bullen.  Excellent 
specimens  of  this  curious  work  will  be  found  in  Lacroix's 
"Middle  Ages,"1  Xoel  Humphreys'  "History  of  the  Art 
"of  Printing"2  and  similar  books.     The  block-books  printed 

1  Leg  Arts  au  Moyen  Age  et  a  l'Epoque  de  la  Renaissance:  par  Paul 
Laeroix.  Paris:  Didot  Freres,  Fils  et  Cie.  1869.  (Eng.  ed.  London: 
Virtue  &  Co.) 

'History  of  the  Art  of  Printing.  By  H.  Noel  Humphreys  (second 
issue).     London:  Quaritch,  1868. 


48  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

in  the  beginning  of  the  fifteenth  century  afford  matter  for 
interesting  comparison  with  those  executed  ten,  fifteen  or 
twenty  years  before. 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  there  is  no  satisfactory  hand- 
book devoted  to  this  subject.  One  writer  describes  one  or 
more  and  another  two  or  three  others  of  these  books,  but 
nearly  all  the  writers  make  use  of  the  books,  principally 
as  so  much  argument  in  the  discussion  of  the  history  or 
development  of  typography.  The  best  book  on  this  sub- 
ject at  present  is  Dutuit's,1  but  he  only  deals  in  absolute 
detail  with  some  seven  of  the  block-books,  and  then  gives  a 
notice  sommaire  of  the  remainder. 

Fac-similes  of  pages  from  the  "Biblia  Pauperum"  will 
be  found  in  Blades'  "Pentateuch  of  Printing,"2  as  well  as 
in  Humphreys'  work.  There  are  various  dated  copies  of 
this  book,  which  seems  to  have  been  designed  as  a  book  for 
the  poor  friars.  Some  say  that  the  book  was  prepared  by 
St.  Ansgar,  who  copied  the  designs  from  sculptures  in  the 
Cathedral  at  Bremen.  Others  say  that  the  drawings  are 
from  the  painted  windows  of  the  convent  of  Hersehare. 
They  are  probably  from  the  old  "Historia"  of  the  Old  and 
]STe\v  Testaments.  Humphreys  says  "that  Lawrence  Kos- 
her, of  Harlem,  the  inventor  of  movable  types,"  was 
the  printer  of  the  "Biblia  Pauperum,"  but  the  whole  mat- 
ter, date  and  all,  is  much  in  dispute.  In  early  copies  there 
were  forty  and  in  later  editions  fifty  leaves.  The  copies 
vary  in  detail,  but  the  general  idea  of  the  book  is  the  same. 

1  Manuel  a  l'Amateur  d'Estampes :  par  Eugene  Dutuit.  Paris, 
London,  1884-1885. 

2  Pentateuch  of  Printing,  with  a  chapter  on  Judges.  By  William 
Blades.     Chicago:    McClurg,  1891. 


BOTANY    AND    BLOCK-BOOKS.  49 

On  the  same  pages  are  given  pictures  of  apostles  and 
orophets,  or  of  patriarchs  of  the  Old  Testament  and  saints 
of  the  Christian  Church,  and  these  by  the  selected  text  are 
shown  in  type  and  anti-type.  A  copy  was  sold  in  1897  for 
£1,050,  though  in  earlier  days  copies  had  been  sold  for  £37 
and  £257. 

"The  Song  of  Songs,"  or  "Canticum  Canticorum,"  is  of 
Holland  or  Dutch  origin,  and  Mr.  Bullen,  the  keeper  of 
the  books  in  the  British  Museum,  describes  the  designs  as 
showing  marked  improvement,  and  as  being  demonstra- 
tively of  the  school  of  the  Van  Eycks.  They  are  undoubt- 
edly superior  from  an  artistic  point  to  the  drawings  of  the 
"Biblia  Pauperum,"  The  designs  are  a  series  of  appli- 
cations of  the  words  of  the  Canticles  to  St.  Mary,  the 
Virgin. 


British  Essayists. 


British  Essayists. 


A  PERFECTLY  delightful  peep  in  the  umbrageous 
paths  of  booklore  will  be  found  by  those  seeking 
the  company  of  the  British  Essayists.  Just 
think  who  the  principal  writers  were!  Steele,  Addison, 
Pope,  Bishop  Berkeley,  Doctor  Johnson,  Swift,  Chester- 
field, Lord  Orford,  Thomas  Warton,  Cumberland,  and  a 
galaxy  of  other  bright  lights  that  have  graced  English 
literature.  The  writings  of  the  essayists  may  be  called  the 
invention  of  newspapers,  not  "such  as  we  have  to-day,  nor 
"even  like  the  early  'Mercuries,'  or  the  purely  official 
"news  sheets;  still,  the  first  attempts  to  guide  public 
"opinion." 

At  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century  there  were  two 
centers  of  society — the  court  with  the  aristocracy,  and  the 
clubs  and  coffee  houses  used  by  the  commercial  and  profes- 
sional classes.  The  essayists  sought,  out  of  the  contact 
between  these  classes,  to  mould  opinion.  With  the  eman- 
cipation of  the  press  from  State  control,  by  the  lapse  and 
non-renewal  of  the  Licensing  act  in  1679,  arose  the  devel- 
opment of  the  modern  press.  The  time  and  the  occasion 
for  such  a  growth  were  existent.     What  was  wanting  was 

53 


54  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

the  man  to  fit  the  needs  of  the  times.  Such  a  man  was 
Sir  Richard  Steele. 

The  originator  of  essays  as  a  form  of  periodical  writing 
was  Daniel  Defoe.  In  1704  he  commenced  the  literary 
and  political  journal,  entitled  The  Review,1  a  number 
appearing  on  those  days  of  the  week  "when  the  post  left 
"London  for  the  country."  His  politics  brought  him  into 
such  frequent  collision  with  the  authorities  that  The 
Review  was  discontinued ;  but  other  writers  followed  the 
example  he  had  set,  and  a  legion  of  periodical  essays  were 
published. 

How  delightful  it  is  to  be  drawn  to  read  these  essays,  and 

through  them  to  be  induced  to  peruse  the  biographies,  of 

such  an  inimitable  ne'er-do-weel  as  Dicky  Steele,  and  the 

famous  Mr.  Joseph  Addison,  which  tell  of  their  curious 

experiences  of  matrimony — to  read  of  the  recklessness  of 

Steele;   the  apparent  uselessness  of  money  when  it  did 

come  to  him ;  his  contests  with  theatrical  employees  who 

never  saw  the  "color  of  his  Honor's  money,"  and  threatened 

never  to  drive  a  nail  until  they  did ;  and  his  defeats  under 

duns  and  bailiffs.  And  this  love  of  biography  will  be  greatly 

accentuated  by  a  perusal  of  such  papers  as  those  in  The 

Tatler.2     The  essayists,  as  writers,  formed  a  great  epoch 

in  literature.     The  Tatler  was  exclusively  the  design  of 

Steele,   and  ran    1709-1711,   through    two  hundred   and 

seventy-one   papers.      It  was   named    "Tatler"    in   honor 

of  the  fair  sex,  and  was  chiefly  intended  for  them  in  its 

origin.      The  first  four  numbers  were  given  away  gratuit- 

1  The  Review  (under  various  forms  and  titles)  :  Feb.  19,  1704 — June 
11,  1713. 
"The  Tatler:  April  12,  1709— Jan.  2,  1711. 


BRITISH    ESSAYISTS.  55 

on  sly.  Then  the  numbers  were  charged  for  at  the  rate 
of  one  penny,  but  later  the  price  was  two-pence  a  paper. 
One  angry  correspondent,  whom  Steele  had  styled  "Tom 
"Folio,"  declared  that  he  was  designated,  in  reality,  "Tom 
"Fool,"  and  in  return  described  The  Tatler  as  "writings 
"printed  on  tobacco  paper  and  filled  with  scurvy  letters." 
Tom  Folio's  indignation  arose  from  his  being  made  the 
subject  of  a  skit  upon  those  who  preferred  an  Aldus  or 
an  Elzevir  to  a  Horace  or  a  Virgil,  and  who  knew  only 
where  in  some  "rare  volume"  two  commas  could  be  found 
on  some  particular  page  instead  of  a  parenthesis,  by  which 
rarity  a  particular  copy  could  be  distinguished,  and  for 
that  reason  esteemed  a  treasure,  especially  if  it  had,  addi- 
tionally, a  semicolon  turned  upside  down.  "Poor  Tom 
"Folio"  was  described  as  a  man  who  "knew  little  but  the 
"title  pages  of  books,  and  those  only  as  a  bibliomaniac, 
"and  not  a  bibliophile."     Hence  his  indignation. 

When  collected  in  volumes,  the  papers  of  The  Tatler 
were  sold  for  a  guinea  a  volume,  and  had  for  subscribers  a 
loug  list  of  "the  greatest  beauties  and  wits  in  the  whole 
"island  of  Great  Britain,"  whose  names  Steele  intended  to 
print  alphabetically,  a  fact  he  stated  to  be  "worthy  of  men- 
"tion,  for  the  sole  benefit  of  those  who  were  not  subscribers 
"up  to  that  date."  The  imaginary  editor  of  The  Tatler 
stated  its  design  to  be  to  expose  the  false  arts  of  life,  to  pull 
off  the  disguises  of  cunning,  vanity  and  affectation,  and  to 
recommend  a  real  simplicity  in  our  dress,  our  discourse 
and  our  behavior. 

The  reading  of  Steele  and  Addison,  and  also  of  books 
about  them,  will  insure  to  the  peruser  of  Lord  Lytton's 


56  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

"Devereux"  and  Thackeray's  "Henry  Esmond,"  increased 
pleasure,  as  in  both  of  them  both  are  introduced. 

So  long  as  books  exist,  The  Spectator,1  the  immediate 
successor  of  The  Toiler,  will  be  of  much  interest  to  readers. 
The  hypothetical  club,  of  which  the  various  members  were 
contributors  to  the  paper,  proved  a  popular  thought. 
What  a  pleasure  it  is  to  read  for  the  first  time  about  the 
quaint  Sir  Roger  de  Coverley,  noted  for  his  modesty,  gen- 
erosity, hospitality,  eccentric  whims  shown  in  his  courtesy 
to  his  neighbors,  his  affection  for  his  family  and  his  amia- 
bility to  his  servants! 

His  adventures,  opinions  and  conversation  by  or  relating 
to  himself,  occupy  twenty-six  papers.  Of  these  Addi- 
son wrote  fifteen,  Steele  seven,  Budgell  three  and  Tickell 
one.  The  impropriety  attributed  to  the  hero,  in  jSTo.  410, 
has  often  been  quoted  as  leading  to  the  end  of  The 
Spectator.  It  is  said  that  Addison  was  so  enraged  at  the 
slur  cast  on  the  "modern  gentleman  of  Queen  Anne's  time" 
that  he  swore,  which,  it  is  also  said  he  never  did  but  this 
once,  that  he  would  "kill"  Sir  Roger  lest  someone  else 
should  "murder"  him. 

"We  love  Sir  Roger,"  says  Thackeray,  "for  his  vanities 
"as  much  as  for  his  virtues."  Many  supposed  identifica- 
tions of  the  characters  have  been  advanced,  but  they  are 
probably  groundless ;  and  the  club  and  characters  are,  more 
likely  than  not,  altogether  fictitious.  In  The  Spectator  we 
run  across  the  pleasant  satire  on  tedious  memoirs,  entitled 
a  "Journal  of  the  Retired  Citizen,"  containing  a  pleasant 

'The  Spectator:    March  1,  1711-Dec.  6,  1712— June  18,  1714-Dec. 
20,  1714   (035  numbers). 


BRITISH    ESSAYISTS.  57 

and  satisfactory  week's  memories,  in  which  the  main  de- 
tails are :  So-and-So  tied  his  knee-strings ;  retired  to  bed  ; 
woke  early,  worked  late,  and  so  on.  How  many  such  elab- 
orations of  nothing  have  wearied  patient  readers.  There, 
too,  we  find  "The  Vision  of  Mirza,"  a  perfect  piece  of 
writing,  and  for  pure  fim  all  can  enjoy  the  description  of 
the  Busy  News  Monger,  a  kind  of  unoccupied  Paul  Pry, 
who  always  arrived  when  there  was  a  dearth  of  foreign 
intelligence,  and  arrived  again  before  daylight  to  ascertain 
if  the  French  mails  had  come  in. 

With  the  commencement  of  The  Guardian,1  in  1713, 
which  followed  The  Spectator,  arose  one  of  the  periodical 
quarrels,  which  Tonson,  the  publisher,  had  with  most  of 
the  persons  with  whom  he  had  business  dealings.  The 
difficulty  arose  probably  over  some  change  in  sides  on  a 
political  matter,  the  details  of  which  are  not  now  clearly 
ascertainable,  but  at  all  events  the  last  number  of  The 
Guardian  was  issued  in  October  of  the  same  year. 

Between  The  Spectator  and  its  great  successor,  The 
Rambler,2  a  host  of  unsuccessful,  or  only  temporarily  suc- 
cessful, journals  were  published.  John  Paine,  the  book- 
seller, backed  The  Rambler,  and  promised  Dr.  Johnson 
four  guineas  a  week  for  two  papers,  with  a  share  in  future 
profits,  which  fortunately  materialized.  The  Rambler 
was  published  in  Prance  and  Italy,  and  the  title  was  lit- 
erally translated  by  the  Italians,  II  Vagabondo.  Dr.  John- 
son may  be  said  to  have  rewritten  most  of  the  essays, 
as   there    were    six    thousand    alterations    in    the    second 

lThe  Guardian:  March  12,  1713-Oct.  1,  1713   (175  numbers). 
"The  Rambler:  March  20,   1750-March   14,  1752    (208  numbers). 


58  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

and  third  editions,  and  its  value  was  shown  in  that 
the  learned  doctor  lived  to  see  ten  large  editions  published 
in  England,  besides  unlimited  copies  elsewhere.  Numer- 
ous editions  have  been  published  since  his  death. 

On  the  cessation  of  The  Rambler  Dr.  John  Hawkesworth 
published  The  Adventurer,1  which  ran  to  one  hundred  and 
forty  numbers.  He  was  assisted  by  Johnson,  Joseph  War- 
ton  and  Bathurst,  and  contributed  seventy  papers  himself. 
Probably  the  most  amusing  paper  is  that,  giving  a  ludi- 
crous account  of  a  playwright,  who  being  invited  to  give  a 
reading  of  a  manuscript  play  at  a  nobleman's  house,  meets 
with  various  physical  accidents  by  tumbling  against  the 
furniture.  It  was  founded  on  an  actual  event  in  Gay's  life, 
and  was  amusingly  paralleled  in  Guild  Hall,  London,  when 
the  King  of  the  Belgians,  who  was  very  short-sighted, 
attended  to  receive  the  freedom  of  the  city  from  one  of  the 
City  Companies.  Going  forward  to  greet  Baroness  Bur- 
dett-Coutts,  who  had  just  previously  been  made  the  first 
"Livery  Man"  of  the  city,  the  King  stumbled  over  a  foot- 
stool, barely  saving  himself  from  taking  a  seat  in  the 
lap  of  the  Baroness,  near  whom  he  landed  in  an  undignified 
manner  in  an  adjoining  chair,  to  the  great  amusement  of 
many  who  were  present,  including  the  writer. 

A  rather  curious  incident  occurred  in  connection  with  the. 
publication  of  the  successor  to  The  Adventurer,  which  was 
entitled  The  ^Yorld.2  This  latter  was  a  successful  publica- 
tion, and  the  sales  generally  reached  to  over  two  thousand  a 
number.     In    No.    209    (the    last)    the   editor   was    ficti- 

'The  Adventurer:    Nov.  7,  1752-Mareh  9,  1754. 
2  The  World:  Jan.  24,  1753-Dec.  30,  1756. 


BRITISH    ESSAYISTS.  59 

tionsly  alleged  to  have  died,  and  a  great  deal  of  mis- 
called fun  and  joking  was  extracted  from  this  grim 
piece  of  humor.  When  the  writer  published  a  second 
edition  he  superintended  the  republication  of  the  num- 
ber, and  actually  died  when  the  last  paper  was  in  the 
press.  The  design  of  the  periodical  was  to  try  what  good 
could  be  done  by  turning  the  follies  of  that  day  "into  ridi- 
"cule  under  the  mark  or  defense  of  apology,"  and  therefore 
"to  ridicule,  with  novelty  and  good  humor,  fashions, 
"foibles,  vices  and  absurdities  of  that  part  of  the  human 
"species  which  calls  itself  the  world." 

There  were  two  editors  to  the  next  of  the  series  of  essays, 
entitled  The  Connoisseur,1  namely,  George  B.  Colman  and 
Bonnell  Thornton.  They  were  at  that  time  young  men  at 
Oxford.  Thornton  is  celebrated  as  an  early  pioneer  in  the 
getting  up  of  burlesque  exhibitions.  He  inaugurated  "An 
"Exhibition  of  Sign  Paintings"  in  Bow  street,  Covent  Gar- 
den, to  which  Hogarth  also  contributed.  The  catalogue 
explains  the  jocular  character  of  the  signs  exhibited.  ISTo. 
36,  for  instance,  shows  a  sailor  falling  from  a  horse  against 
the  tenth  milestone  from  Portsmouth,  and  represents,  it  is 
explained,  a  man  out  of  his  element.  Hogarth  contributed 
a  view  of  the  road  to  Paddington,  including  a  presentation 
of  "The  Deadly  Xever  Green,  that  Bears  Fruit  All  the 
"Year  Round."  The  sign  was  Tyburn,  with  three  fellows 
on  the  gallows,  and  the  critics,  we  are  told,  "deemed  the 
"piece  remarkable  for  the  execution."  Of  the  remainder 
of  the  publications,  suffice  it  to  say,  that  in  The  Idle)2  we 

'The  Connoisseur:  Jan.  31,  1754-Sept.  30,  1756. 
'The  Idler    (published    in    "The    Universal    Chronicle  or  Weekly 
"Gazette")  ;  April  15,  1758-April  5,  1760  (103  numbers). 


60  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

find  a  very  severe  criticism  of  a  public  piece  of  folly, 
namely,  that  of  a  young  lady  who  laid  a  wager  that  she 
would  ride  a  thousand  miles  in  a  thousand  hours.  At  her 
coming  the  country  people  strewed  flowers  in  her  way  and 
made  great  rejoicing.  What  would  Dr.  Johnson  have  said 
to  the  later  folly  executed  by  a  man  who,  in  the  middle  of 
the  last  century,  walked  consecutively  one  thousand  miles 
in  one  thousand  hours,  one  thousand  half  miles  in  one 
thousand  half  hours,  and  one  thousand  quarter  miles  in 
one  thousand  quarter  hours,  being  greeted  daily  by  crowds 
of  Londoners  and  their  country  cousins,  who  went  to  see 
him  tramping  on  his  weary  tan  pathway  ? 

The  Observer,1  which  was  published  by  Henry  Cumber- 
land, was  designed  to  be  a  "liber  circumevarens"  that 
is,  freely  translated,  a  series  of  round-about  papers.  It 
attained  to  one  hundred  and  fifty-two  numbers,  and  has 
been  regarded  as  a  not  unworthy  successor  of  The  Spec- 
tator and  The  Adventurer. 

The  most  interesting  collected  edition  of  the  British 
Essayists  is  still  that  in  forty-five  volumes  edited  by  Dr. 
Alexander  Chalmers,2  with  historical  and  biographical 
prefaces.  It  is  a  collection  of  literature,  characteristic  of 
the  age  in  which  it  was  written,  but  now  of  the  past. 

The  insight  to  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  times 
gained  by  turning  over  the  leaves  of  these  volumes  is  very 
great.  The  additional  interest  gained  in  the  other  works 
of    the    authors,    and    the    consequent    perusal    of    biog- 

1  Published  in  two  volumes,  1785 — enlarged  1786 — published  in 
six  volumes,  1790. 

2  London.     J.  Johnson;  and  others.     1802-1803. 


BRITISH    ESSAYISTS.  61 

rapines,  memoirs  and  similar  books,  tends  to  prove  that 
this  narrow  cutting  through  the  forest  of  literature,  cir- 
cumscribed as  it  may  be  in  its  outlook,  and  somewhat 
similar  in  character  throughout  its  length,  is  yet  full  of 
shady  pleasantnesses  and  views  worth  seeing,  and  he  who 
has  strolled  down  it  once,  will  be  inclined  to  revisit  it  often. 


A  Few  Art  Treasures. 


A  Few  Art  Treasures. 


TXTAXDERIXG  through  woods  and  amongst  trees  and 
shrubs,  desiring  to  more  closely  examine  the  foli- 
age and  the  blooms  of  each,  induces  many 
and  many  a  one  to  cull  a  bouquet,  so  that  the  bulbs 
and  full-grown  flowers  may  each  be  examined  and  enjoyed 
at  home.  There  are,  however,  treasures  which  cannot  be 
so  collected  and  carried  off  to  be  enjoyed  in  a  house. 
Sprigs  of  honeysuckle,  privet,  phlox ;  sprays  of  maiden 
fern,  nestling  violets  or  bolder  sweet-william,  may  all  be 
plucked  and  carried  away  for  home  enjoyment.  Kot  so, 
however,  a  stately  tree  or  bush  of  broom,  which  must 
remain  in  spots  to  which  their  lovers  must  make  pilgrimages 
as  often  as  they  desire  to  revel  in  the  sight  of  their  beauty. 
This  restriction  calls  up  another  phase  of  the  use  of 
multitudes  of  books  in  a  library.  Outside  of  those  that 
can  be  plucked,  as  it  were,  and  carried  home,  there  are 
numbers  of  books  that  can  only  be  examined  and  studied 
on  the  spot  to  which  they  are  rooted  or  shelved,  whether 
such  rooting  be  in  a  room  devoted  to  art  and  decoration, 
to  ancient  and  modern  architecture,  or  to  whatever  may  be 

5 


66  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

the   division    of   book   lore   to   which    such   volumes    are 
assigned. 

Small  and  insignificant  as  are  the  rooms  at  present 
appropriated  to  the  purposes  of  the  Free  Library  of  Phila- 
delphia, there  are  one  or  two  nooks  and  corners  in  which 
books  can  be  examined  that  give  rare  delight  to  the  casual  or 
the  devoutest  lover  of  fine  books.  In  examining  a  few  such 
works,  we  find  that  each  has  a  separate  lesson  for  those  who 
examine  them,  and  each  directs  the  thoughts  and  ideas  of 
the  student  to  a  separate  and  important  department  of  art 
and  literature. 

For  delicacy  of  coloring  and  for  beauty  of  book  making, 
it  would  be  difficult  to  find  a  better  example  than  Edouard 
Garnier's  volume  on  "The  Soft  Porcelain  of  Sevres."1 
This  volume  has  fifty  plates,  representing  two  hundred  and 
fifty  water-color  subjects  after  the  originals.  The  speci- 
mens are  selected  from  samples  in  the  collections  of  such 
well-known  collectors  of  Sevres  material  as  Baron 
Alphonse  de  Rothschild;  her  Majesty,  the  Queen  Victoria; 
the  South  Kensington  Museum,  London ;  Mons.  S.  L. 
Watelin ;  and  Sir  Richard  Wallace.  The  work  forms  the 
subject  of  a  separate  article  in  this  volume. 

Many  great  books  are  known  by  reputation  to  thousands 
who  rarely  have  the  opportunity  of  examining  them,  yet 
who  would  be  only  too  glad  to  make  an  intimate  acquaint- 
ance with  their  contents.  There  is  a  notion  abroad  that  the 
attendants  at  a  library  do  not  like  to  be  asked  to  exhibit 
books  or  to  aid  visitors  in  obtaining  an  inspection  of  a 

1  The  Soft  Porcelain  of  Sevres,  with  an  historical  introduction  by 
Edouard  Garnier.     London:    John  C.  Nimmo,  1892. 


A    FEW    ART    TREASURES.  67 

library's  rarities.  Certainly,  at  the  present  day,  this  is 
not  so. 

At  a  reception  held  some  time  since,  an  opportunity 
to  lay  out  on  tables  for  inspection  by  one  hundred  or  more 
artists  and  architects,  some  of  the  art  treasures  of  the  Free 
Library  of  Philadelphia,  was  embraced.  It  was  delightful 
to  note  the  pleasure  with  which  some  examined  a  copy  of 
the  works  of  Piranesi  the  elder  and  his  son,  collected  in 
twenty-four  folio  yolumes.  The  two  Piranesis  executed 
an  enormous  series  of  engraved  plates,  which  formed 
almost  the  life  work  of  the  enthusiastic  father.  The  work 
has  ahvavs  been  very  highly  esteemed  and  King  George 
III.,  in  1774,  deemed  a  copy  of  this  collection  worthy  of 
presentation  as  a  special  gift  to  Pope  Clement  XIV.  The 
collection  contains  eleven  hundred  and  eighty  plates,  with 
three  portraits,  including  the  engraved  titles  and  some 
remarkable  engraved  dedications;  one  volume  being  de- 
voted to  descriptive  text.  The  whole  collection  has  been 
styled  "a  gem  of  art."  The  elder  Piranesi,  who  spent  the 
greater  part  of  his  life  in  Rome,  has  been  called  "the  Rem- 
"brandt  of  Architecture,"  and  nothing  more  remarkable  in 
the  management  of  light  and  shade  and  in  attractive  weird- 
ness  can  be  mentioned  than  many  of  his  engravings  in  these 
volumes. 

In  Volume  VI,  as  the  collection  is  ordinarily  bound,  are 
sixteen  double  plates,  each  plate  occupying  two  pages, 
giving  a  series  of  dream-conceived  "prisons."  These  made 
a  great  impression  on  Coleridge  and  De  Quinecy.  The 
latter,  in  his  "Confessions  of  an  English  Opium-Eater," 
writes:  "Many  years  ago,  when  I  was  looking  over  Pira- 


68  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

"host's  'Antiquities  of  Rome,'  Mr.  Coleridge,  who  was 
"standing  by,  described  to  me  a  set  of  plates  by  that  artist 
"called  his  'Dreams,'  and  which  record  the  scenery  of  his 
"own  visions  during  the  delirium  of  a  fever.  Some  of  them 
"(I  describe  only  from  memory  of  Mr.  Coleridge's  account) 
"represented  vast  Gothic  halls ;  on  the  floor  of  which  stood 
"all  sorts  of  engines  and  machinery,  wheels,  cables,  pulleys, 
"levers,  catapults,  &c,  expressive  of  enormous  power  put 
"forth  and  resistance  overcome.  Creeping  along  the  sides 
"of  the  wall  you  perceived  a  staircase ;  and  upon  it,  grop- 
"ing  his  way  upward,  was  Piranesi  himself.  Follow  the 
"stairs  a  little  further,  and  you  perceive  it  to  come  to  a 
"sudden,  abrupt  termination,  without  any  balustrade,  and 
"allowing  no  step  onward  to  him  who  had  reached  the 
"extremity,  except  into  the  depths  below.  Whatever  is  to 
"become  of  poor  Piranesi,  you  suppose,  at  least,  that  his 
"labors  must  in  some  way  terminate  here.  But  raise  your 
"eyes,  and,  behold,  a  second  flight  of  stairs  still  higher ;  on 
"which  again  Piranesi  is  perceived,  by  this  time  standing 
"on  the  very  brink  of  the  abyss.  Again  elevate  your  eye, 
"and  a  still  more  aerial  flight  of  stairs  is  beheld  ;  and  again 
"is  poor  Piranesi  busy  on  his  aspiring  labors;  and  so  on 
"until  the  unfinished  stairs  and  Piranesi  both  are  lost  in 
"the  upper  gloom  of  the  hall." 

The  title  and  description  given  by  De  Quincey  are  not 
strictly  accurate,  but  still  they  give  a  powerful  insight  into 
this  weird  series  of  engravings  by  Piranesi. 

Among  other  valuable  subjects  dealt  with  in  this  interest- 
ing series  of  engravings  may  be  mentioned  the  details  of 
Trajan's  Column,  given  in  nineteen  plates.     Towards  the 


A    FEW    ART    TREASURES.  69 

closo  of  the  sixteenth  century  this  column  had  become 
much  injured,  only  the  feet  of  the  statue  of  Trajan  remain- 
ing. Pope  Sixtus  V.  undertook  the  restoration  of  it  in 
1585,  and  the  figure  of  St.  Peter  was  substituted  on  the 
summit  for  the  Emperor's  fallen  statue.  The  bas-reliefs 
contain  about  twenty-five  hundred  human  figures,  besides 
a  great  number  of  horses,  fortresses,  etc. 

With  a  glimpse  at  the  Laocoon  group,  we  turn  aside 
from  Piranesi.  This  group  was  esteemed  by  Pliny  as 
"preferable  to  any  other  production  of  the  art  of  painting 
"or  of  statuary."  Piranesi  has  posed  the  right  anus  of 
the  figures  after  the  restoration  differently  to  the  pose, 
claimed  by  Liibke  to  be  correct,  a  drawing  of  which  may  be 
found  in  his  "History  of  Sculpture,"  page  235.  The  sub- 
ject has  been  a  favorite  one  with  writers  ever  since  Virgil.1 
Byron  has  devoted  a  stanza  to  the  group  in  his  "Childe 
"Harold  ;"2  Thomson  incorporated  its  beauties  into  his 
"Liberty  ;"3  and  it  is  hardly  necessary  to  mention  the  fact 
that  Lessing  used  the  group  as  a  basis  for  expounding  his 
system  of  art,  giving  to  the  treatise  the  title  "Laocoon,  or 
"the  limits  of  Poetry  and  Painting." 

A  book  pretty  continuously  examined  and  used  in  large 
libraries  by  persons  connected  with  decoration  as  a  business 
is  a  work  in  two  large  folio  volumes,  entitled  "Oriental 
"Carpets,"  published  in  Vienna  by  the  Imperial  and  Royal 
Austrian  Commercial  Museum,  by  authority ;  the  English 
edition4  of  which  was  edited  under  the  direction  of  Dr. 

^neid,  Book  II,  line  199,  etc. 

2  Childe  Harold's  Pilgrimage,  Canto  IV,  stanza  ICO. 

3  Liberty,  Part  IV,   (Britain). 

4  Vienna   (two  parts),  1892-1893. 


70  HITHER    AND    THITHEK. 

Clarke,  of  the  South  Kensington  Museum  in  England. 
The  work  was  restricted  to  four  hundred  copies,  of 
which  two  hundred  form  the  German  edition  and  the 
remainder  the  English  and  French  editions.  The  Free 
Library  of  Philadelphia  possesses  copy  ISTo.  293,  and  it  is  a 
work  of  great  importance  to  those  who  desire  to  inform 
themselves,  not  only  on  the  rise  and  progress  of  the  manu- 
facture of  carpets,  but  on  the  immense  capabilities  of  this 
important  article  of  commerce.  There  are  monographs  on 
modern  Turkey  carpets,  on  the  decorative  animal  figures 
in  old  Oriental  carpets,  the  present  state  of  the  carpet 
industry  in  Persia,  the  history  of  Oriental  carpet  weaving 
in  France  and  kindred  subjects.  The  plates  are  executed 
in  chromotype,  and  accompanied  by  plates  in  heliotype, 
the  whole  being  accompanied  by  a  minute  description  of 
the  warp,  weft,  knotting  and  decoration  of  each  carpet. 
The  chromotypes  are  executed  on  satin  and  aid  those  who 
want  to  study  the  effect  of  the  carpet,  with  all  its  various 
decorations  of  color,  animals,  trees,  and  so  on;  the  helio- 
types  assist  those  who  consult  the  work  in  order  to  make  a 
careful  study  of  the  detail  of  execution ;  while  for  the  com- 
plete understanding  of  the  plates,  the  preliminary  explana- 
tions will  be  found  to  be  very  minute  and  carefully  pre- 
pared. 


A  Polyglot  Psalter. 


A  Polyglot  Psalter. 


THERE  are,  of  course,  many  interesting  polyglot 
Bibles  and  Psalters,  but  one  of  the  most  interest- 
ing is  that  generally  known  as  the  Genoan  poly- 
glot It  comprises  the  Psalter,  and  was  published  in  1516, 
two  years  after  the  commencement  of  the  issue  of  the 
"Complntensian,"  the  earliest  of  the  series.  The  German 
Psalter  is  printed  in  eight  columns,  four  on  each  page,  so 
that  the  whole  group  is  before  the  eye  at  one  time.  On  the 
first  page  are  the  Hebrew,  a  Latin  literal  yersion  of  the 
same,  the  Vulgate  and  the  Greek.  On  the  opposite  page  are 
given  the  Arabic,  a  Chaldee  paraphrase  of  the  same  in 
Hebrew  characters,  a  Latin  literal  translation  of  the  same, 
and  in  the  eighth  column  are  the  "scholia"  and  notes.  This 
is  the  first  specimen  of  Western  printing  in  the  Arabic 
character. 

A  great  deal  of  interest  in  the  book  lies  in  the  fact  that 
in  one  of  the  notes  to  Psalm  xix,  as  a  commentary  on  the 
passage  "Their  words  arc  gone  out  to  the  end  of  the  world," 
is  given  a  sketch  of  the  life  of  Christopher  Columbus,  with 
an  account  of  the  discovery  of  America  and  descriptions  of 


74 


HITHER    AND    THITHER. 


the  inhabitants.  According  to  this  note,  Columbus  boasted 
himself  to  be  the  person  appointed  by  God  to  fulfill  the 
prophetic  exclamation  of  the  Prophet  David,  that  he  should 
carry  knowledge  to  the  ends  of  the  world.  As  may  be 
expected,  this  note  has  led  to  much  disputation,  and  the 
son  of  Columbus,  in  the  "Vida  y  Hechos  del  Almirante 
"D.  C.  Colon,"  contradicts  the  statements  of  the  writer  of 
the  note  in  several  particulars. 

The  volume  was  printed  in  September,  1516,  by  Peter 
Paul  Porrus,  of  Milan,  on  the  premises  of  Xicholas 
Justinian  Paul,  at  Genoa.  Porrus  himself  was  a  resident  of 
Turin.  On  the  last  page  is  a  very  interesting  "printer's 
"mark,"  consisting  of  a  full-grown  leek,  with  two  letters, 
UP.  P.,"  one  on  each  side  of  the  plant. 


Children's  Literature. 


Children's  Literature. 


IT  would  certainly  seem  to  be  a  difficult  task  to  find  a 
new  field  of  bibliographical  description,  and  yet  a 
few  years  since,  Mrs.  E.  M.  Field  apparently  did 
so  in  her  volume  ''The  Child  and  His  Book,"1  in  which  she 
treats  chronologically  of  the  history  and  progress  of  chil- 
dren's literature  in  England.  From  the  time  when 
Thomas  Frognall  Dibdin  set  the  modern  bibliographical 
ball  rolling,  in  his  new  and  improved  edition  of  Ames' 
and  Herbert's  '"Typographical  Antiquities,"2  hundreds  of 
volumes  have  been  published  dealing  with  other  books, 
limited  to  minute  descriptions  of  all  sorts  and  descrip- 
tions of  works,  from  Renouard's  Aldines  and  Willems' 
Elzevirs  to  Lowndes,  Brunet,  Allibone,  Sonnenschein,  etc., 
till  the  mere  list  of  such  reference  books  becomes  almost 
bewildering.  In  furnishing  a  categorical  account  of  the 
rise  and  progress  of  children's  books  as  a  separate  class, 
Jlrs.  Field  supplied  a  distinct  want.     She  found  in   Bur- 

1The  Child  and  His  Book.  By  Mrs.  E.  M.  Field.  London: 
Wells  Gardner  Dart  on  &  Co.,  1891. 

1  Joseph  Ames  published  his  "Typographical  Antiquities''  in  1741). 
William  Herbert's  edition,  with  additional  matter,  appeared,  Vol.  1, 
1785;  Vol.  II,  1786;  Vol.  111.  1790.  Dibdin  issued  the  work  in  its 
final  form:  Vol.  I,  1810;  Vol.  II,  1812;  Vol.  Ill,  1816;  Vol.  IV,  1820. 


to  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

ton's  "Book  Hunter"  a  most  admirable  text  for  her  mono- 
graph, which  seems  worth  quoting.  "If,"  says  Burton,  "we 
"are  to  consider  that  the  condition  of  the  human  mind  at 
"any  particular  juncture  is  worth  studying,  it  is  certainly 
"of  importance  to  hear  on  what  food  its  infancy  is  fed." 
Mrs.  Field  gives  the  history  of  literature  provided  for 
children  from  the  earliest  times,  long  before  printing  was 
invented,  to  somewhere  about  the  end  of  the  first  quarter  of 
the  last  century,  and  from  every  chapter  much  entertain- 
ing, as  well  as  instructive,  gossip  may  be  gathered. 
"Beginning  at  the  very  beginning,"  she  starts  out  with  the 
education,  small  as  it  was,  accorded  to  British  youth  before 
the  Norman  conquest,  and  describes  the  early  monastic 
schools,  when  only  the  teacher  was  provided  with  a  book. 
The  book  was  most  frequently  a  simple  and  pleasant  Latin 
composition,  in  which  cheerful  dialogues  of  every-day  sub- 
jects were  used  as  vehicles  for  instruction.  Generally  wide- 
written  versions  were  made  on  vellum  with  a  gloss  or  trans- 
lation written  in  between  the  lines  for  the  guidance  of  the 
teacher,  who  sate  in  state,  in  a  high-back  chair,  whilst  his 
boy  and  girl  pupils  were  ranged  before  him,  sitting  or 
kneeling,  as  the  case  might  be,  and  were  instructed.  Dur- 
ing this  period  the  most  celebrated  student  and  teacher  was 
the  Venerable  Bede.  His  books  of  instruction  read  oddly 
enough  to-day.  Astronomy,  in  his  view,  had  two  uses,  one 
to  display  the  power  of  God  and  the  other  to  fix  the  church 
calendar;  whilst  a  later  teacher,  Alcuin,  defined  herbs  as 
"the  friends  of  physicians  and  the  praise  of  cooks."  A 
third  teacher  was  careful  to  confute  sundry  popular  errors 
"as  that  of  certain  unlearned  priests,"  who  declared  that 


children's  literature.  79 

leap  year  bad  been  produced  by  Josbua  when  he  made  the 

sun  stand  still. 

The  books  from  the  Conquest  to  Caxton,  covering  the 

period  10  G  6-148  5,  comprised  many  of  counsel  or  morals 

addressed  to  young  persons.     In  one  of  them  "the  wise 

"woman    is    to    love    God    and    the    Church ;    from    the 

"latter,  rain  is  not  to  keep  her  away ;  she  is  not  to  chatter 

"there ;  she  is  not  to  be  of  many  words,  to  swear  not  leefe, 

"nor  be  ofte  dninke."     The  wise  man  is  "to  be  diligent 

"not  tale  wijs;"  and  the  whole  duty  of  a  child  is  related  in 

one  hundred  and  two  lines,  in  which  the  use  and  value  of 

the  rod  to  young  people  is  fully  expounded,  concluding 

with  the  admonition: 

"So,  children,  here  may  ye  all  hear  and  see 
"How  all  children  chastised  should  be  ; 
"And  therefore,  children,  look  that  ye  do  well, 
"And  no  hard  beating  shall  ye  befall, 
"Thus  may  ye  all  be  right  good  men 

"God  grant  you  grace  so  to  preserve   you. 
"Amen." 

The  child  iu  England,  even  if  of  the  dignity  of  wards  of 

royalty,  had  a  serious  time  whilst  under  tutelage.     Apart 

from  the  system  of  a  blow  for  every  mistake  and  general 

corporal  correction  as  a  way  of  knocking  knowledge  into 

obtuse  minds,  the  mere  hours  of  study  were,  to  put  it 

mildly,  severe.     The  rules  laid  down  for  Queen  Elizabeth's 

wards  required  them  at  six  to  go  to  prayers,  and  then  have 

a  Latin  lesson  till  eleven,  when  they  dined.     From  twelve 

to  two  they  studied  music ;  French  from  two  till  three ; 

then  Latin  and  Greek  till  five,  after  which  followed  prayers 

and  an  interval  for  "honest  pastimes."     From  eight  till 

nine  the  music  master  again  held  supremacy,  following 


80  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

which  the  wards  went  to  a  well-earned  heel  time.  Of 
Bushy,  famous  as  a  wielder  of  the  rod,  it  is  related,  that 
once  when  he  was  in  school,  a  stone  came  through  the 
window.  Busby,  supposing  the  offender  to  he  a  hoy,  sent 
for  him,  and  a  Frenchman  entered,  apologizing  profusely. 
Busby,  however,  merely  said  to  his  scholars,  "Take  him 
"up,"  and  the  unfortunate  foreigner  was  duly  flogged.  He 
departed  furious,  and  sent  a  messenger  with  a  challenge  to 
the  schoolmaster.  Busby  read  the  challenge,  tore  it  up, 
and  turned  to  the  boys  with  "Take  him  up !"  The  mes- 
senger was  duly  whipped,  and  on  his  return  to  his  princi- 
pal demanded  compensation,  hut  was  met  with  a  shrug: 
"Ah  ciel,  que  faire  ?  He  is  the  vipping  man  !  He  vip  me, 
"he  vip  you,  he  vip  all  the  world  !" 

The  hooks  of  courtesy  or  counsel  on  manners  have 
special  interest,  as  they  afford  a  deep  insight  into  the  every- 
day habits  and  domestic  life  of  the  young  people  of  that 
day;  and  in  this  way,  to  the  customs  of  the  period. 
The  books  dealt  Avith  courtesy,  demeanor  and  the  arts  of 
carving  and  serving;  the  details  being  quaint  in  the 
extreme  and  indicating  a  primitiveness  of  manners  not 
only  surprising,  but  "a  little  revolting  to  our  modern 
"notions."  It  was  there  taught  that  "a  noble  child"  should 
not  "lick  dishes,"  for  that  is  the  propertie  of  "catties,"  and 
should  remember  that  it  is  a  "wilde  and  rude  thinge  to 
"lean  upon  one's  elbow."  Such  forms  of  counsel  were  not 
always  humbly  accepted,  as  in  a  caricature  of  1605,  we 
find  the  advice : 

"When  thou  art  set  devoure  as  much  as  thou  with  healthe  canst  eate 
"Thou  therefore  wert  to  dinner  bid,  to  help  away  his  meate  " 


children's  literature.  81 

About  this  time  came  into  use  the  Horn-book,  alphabet 
pages  and  alphabet  poems,  of  which  "A  apple  pie"  survives 
to  this  day,  with  the  worthy  and  ever-enduring  "A  was  an 
"archer."  The  antiquity  of  the  alphabet  craze,  is  wit- 
nessed by  a  sermon  of  over  two  centuries  ago,  in  which  a 
preacher  named  Eachard,  referred  to  it  in  criticising  the 
"over-nice"  notice  taken  by  preachers  of  the  "letters"  of 
their  text.  "Suppose  sir,"  he  said,  "that  you  are  to  give 
"an  exhortation  to  repentance  upon  that  of  St.  Matthew, 
"  'Repent  ye,  for  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven  is  at  hand ;'  you 
"must  observe  that  Repent  is  a  rich  word,  wherein  every 
"letter  exhorts  us  to  our  duty.  Repent,  R  readily,  E 
"earnestly,  P  presently,  E  effectually,  X  nationally,  T 
"thoroughly.  Again  Repent,  Roaringly,  Eagerly,  Plenti- 
fully, Heavily  (because  of  H),  Notably,  Terribly.  And 
"why  not  Repent,  Rarely,  Evenly,  Prettily,  Elegantly, 
"Neatly,  Tightly?  And  also,"  added  Eachard,  "why  not 
"add  A  apple-pasty,  B  bak'd  it,  etc.,"  which  apparently  he 
thought  would  be  as  sensible  teaching. 

After  that  period  came,  from  1510  to  1619,  a  flow  of 
educational  reform,  during  which  was  produced  Ascham's 
"The  Schole  Master."1  The  immediate  cause  of  his  publish- 
ing this  work  was,  he  tells  us,  "a  conversation  at  Secretary 
"Cecil's  dinner-table,  while  he  was  in  attendance  on  Queen 
"Elizabeth  at  Windsor  Castle,  concerning  divers  scholars 
"of  Eton  that  be  run  away  from  school  for  fear  of  beating." 
The  idea  that  a  blow  should  immediately  follow  any  mis- 
take was  evidently  very  deeply  rooted.  It  existed  in  one 
of  the  largest  public  schools  of  London  down  to  at  least  the 

1  The  Schole  Master.     Published  posthumously  in  1570. 
6 


82  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

year  1855,  the  "sub-master"  steadily  pursuing  that  system. 
His  predecessor  was  known  as  Wack  Durham  from  his 
adherence  to  that  method  and  from  his  initials,  W.  A.  C. 
Durham,  wherefore  it  was  said  he  was  Wack  and  his 
pupils  Wacked.  The  way  in  which  boys  regarded  their 
birch-tormentors  is  illustrated  by  Dante's  treatment  of  his 
master  (Brunetto),  who  was  repaid  by  his  grateful  pupil 
by  being  consigned  to  a  region  in  the  Infemo,  where,  under 
an  unremitting  reign  of  fire,  he  must  either  walk  forever, 
or  should  he  pause  for  a  moment,  stand  still  for  a  hundred 
years.  All  boys  must  be  curious  to  know  what  fate  over- 
took Mr.  W.  P.  Russell,  the  verbotomist,  or  word-dissector 
as  he  delighted  to  call  himself,  who  in  reference  to  his  own 
book,1  published  in  1805,  wrote  with  the  humility  of  true 
genius:  "I  challenge  the  universe  (or  the  literati  of  each 
"quarter  of  the  globe)  to  produce  any  page  exhibiting 
"brevity  and  perspicuity  equal  to  the  two  columns  in  page 
"52.  They  cannot  do  it;  at  least,  no  such  book  has  ever 
"been  before  me.  I  should  be  glad  to  see  the  work  that 
"equals  Verbotomy  in  this  respect."  For  a  clear  and  logi- 
cal definition,  however,  that  given  in  Caxton's  "Myrrour"2 
deserves  quotation.  "Rethoryke  is  a  scyence  to  cause 
"another  man,  by  speche  or  by  wrytynge,  to  beleue  or  to 
"do  that  thyiige  whyche  thou  woldest  haue  hym  for  to  do. 
"To  the  which  thou  must  fyrst  deuise  some  wey  to  make 
"thy  herers  glad  and  wel  wyllynge  to  here." 

The  seventeenth  century  saw  great  changes,  and  Puri- 
tan teachings  began  to  hold  their    sway.     The    teaching 

1  Verbotomy,  or  the  Anatomy  of  Words. 

2  Thymage,  or  Myrrour  of  the  Worlde,   1481. 


children's  literature.  83 

prevailed  that  man,  from  his  infancy  upward,  was  a  lost 
and  ruined  creature,  to  be  saved  from  an  infinitely  horrible 
eternal  fate,  but  to  be  saved  "so  as  by  fire."  In  the  books 
of  that  period,  one  hapless  child  of  eight  years  of  age,  wept 
inconsolably  because  he  thought  he  had  lied,  for  when  his 
mother  had  asked  him  if  he  felt  cold  he  had  said  "Yes," 
but  afterward  doubted  if  he  had  been  really  cold  and 
moreover,  he  knew  he  was  a  sinner,  because  he  had  whetted 
his  knife  on  the  Lord's  Day.  In  an  "Epistle  to  Youth" 
the  warning  was  prefixed : 

"Upon  a  world,  vain,  toilsome,  foul, 

"A  journey  now  you   enter; 
"The  welfare  of  your  living  soul 

"You  dangerously  adventure." 

One  author,  in  sending  forth  his  book,  trusts  that  if  his 
readers  are  unable  to  call  it  verse,  they  will  at  least  con- 
sider it  good  prose.  Against  this  modest  apology  may  be 
set  off  the  explanation  of  Samuel  Wesley,  in  1T1T,1  who 
"attempted  in  verse"  the  history  of  the  Xew  Testament  in 
the  intervals  of  his  time,  which  he  wished  "had  never  been 
"worse  employed."  "There  are,"  he  adds,  "some  passages 
"here  represented  which  are  so  barren  of  circumstances 
"that  it  was  not  easy  to  make  them  shine  in  verse."  The 
name  of  Wesley  calls  to  mind  that  of  his  brother  minister, 
Dr.  Watts,  of  whose  verses  much  merriment  is  made, 
mainly  by  those  who  have  not  read  the  despised  composi- 

1  The  History  of  the  Old  and  New  Testament  attempted  in  verse 
and  adorned  with  330  sculptures,  1701.  3  vols.  The  History  "fjhe 
New  Testament  was  first  published  separately,  1701;  3d.  ed.  1717. 
The  History  of  the  Old  Testament  separately  in  1704  (Allihone). 
The  History  of  the  Old  and  New  Testament,  attempted  in  verse,  1704. 
3  vols.     2d"ed.,  1717.      (Diet,  of  Nat.  Biog.) 


84  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

tions,  on  account  of  a  "grammatical  error  which  the  good 
"Doctor  never  really  made."    He  did  not  write : 

Let  dogs  delight  to  bark  and  bite. 

For  God  hath  made  them  so  ; 
Let  bears  and  lions  growl  and  fight, 

For  'tis  their  nature  to. 

The  line  really  stands : 

"  'Tis  their  nature,  too." 

An  amusing  story,  says  Mrs.  Field,  is  told  of  a  social 
gathering  of  some  thirty  people,  who,  all  hut  one,  wagered 
a  new  hat  that  the  time-honored  verse  read  thus : 

"Let  dogs  delight  to  bark  and  bite, 
"For  'tis  their  nature  to." 

so  deeply  fixed  in  their  minds  was  the  popular  mistake. 

Of  the  later  providers  of  children's  hooks,  a  good  account 
is  given  of  John  Xe wherry,1  whom  Goldsmith  styled  "the 
"honestest  man  in  creation,"  and  who  was  almost  certainly 
Goldsmith's  hest  friend  in  the  world.  It  is  said  that  the 
passing  traveler  who  relieved  Dr.  Primrose  at  an  ale-house, 
when  taken  ill  while  on  his  journey  in  pursuit  of  Olivia, 
was  no  other  than  "the  philanthropic  bookseller  in  St. 
"Paul's  Churchyard,  who  has  written  so  many  little  books 
"for  children."  Newberry  was  a  good  forerunner  of  the 
present  trade  advertisers,  and  adopted  many  advertising 
devices.  The  following  was  one  of  them :  "This  day  was 
"published 'Nurse  Truelove's  New  Year's  Gift,  or  the  Book 
"  'of  Books  for  Children,'  adorned  with  cuts,  and  designed 
"as  a  present  for  every  little  boy  who  would  become  a  great 
1  Born  1713 — died  1767.     See  for  references  Diet,  of  Nat.  Biog. 


children's  literature.  85 

"man  and  ride  upon  a  fino  horse,  and  to  every  little  girl 
"who  would  become  a  great  woman  and  ride  in  a 
"Lord  Mayor's  gilt  coach.  Printed  for  the  author,  who 
"has  ordered  these  books  to  be  given  gratis  to  all  little  boys 
"and  girls  at  the  Bible  and  Sun  in  St,  Paul's  Churchyard, 
"they  paying  for  the  binding,  which  is  2d  each  book." 
Another  device  was  to  advertise  a  "Pretty  Pocket-Book,  at 
"Gd.,  but  for  Sd.  to  add  a  ball  for  a  boy  or  a  pincushion  for 
"a  girl  to  the  purchase." 

The  whole  of  Mrs.  Field's  book  is  extremely  interesting. 


The  Hammurabi  Code. 


The  Hammurabi  Code.1 


FIVE  thousand  years  ago  Hammurabi,  then  King  of 
Babylon,  promulgated  a  Code  of  laws,  for  the 
government  of  the  mighty  peoples  he  had  sub- 
dued and  over  whom  lie  ruled.  This  Code  is  preserved  on 
a  stone  stele  discovered  at  Susa,  in  Persia.  It  is  a  magnifi- 
cent monument,  nearly  seven  feet  in  height,  and  contains 
nearly  five  thousand  lines  of  cuneiform  characters,  each 
line  containing  an  average  of  six  words.  The  inscription, 
as  is  usual  in  so  many  of  these  ancient  monuments,  is 
columnar.  How  this  monument  came  to  be  at  Susa  is  not 
explained.  It  was  probably  taken  from  Babylon  at  some 
time  when  the  King  of  Susa  gained  a  victory  over  his 
neighbor  and  Suzerain. 

The  most  regrettable  feature  in  connection  with  this 
stele,  is  that  one  of  the  columns  has  been  carefully  polished 
down  so  that  the  inscription  is  lost.  It  is  thought  that  this 
was  done  in  order  that  the  captor  of  the  stele  might  record 
his  name  and  dignities  on  the  cleared  space.  Having 
omitted  to   do  this,   we  are  left  to  the  reasonable  con- 

1  The  Code  of  Hammurabi,  King  of  Babylon  about  2500  B.  C.  By 
Robert  Francis  Harper.  Chicago  University  Press;  Callaghan  &  Co. 
London;  Luzac  &  Co.,  1904. 


90  HITHEE  AND   THITHER. 

jecture  that  lie,  as  Shakespeare  would  call  it,  "con- 
"veyed"  the  monument  to  his  own  territory,  but  for  some 
unexplainable  reason  failed  to  carry  out  his  intention  of 
recording  the  facts  on  the  space  which  had  been  rubbed 
down  for  the  purpose.  No  more  interesting  document  has 
been  brought  to  the  knowledge  of  the  present  day  than  this 
Code.  The  stone  was.  found  by  M.  de  Morgan,  and  on 
it  is  preserved  an  elaborate  record,  by  no  means  tinged 
with  modesty,  of  Hammurabi's  estimation  of  his  own 
greatness,  followed  by  two  hundred  and  eighty-two  edicts 
or  laws.  The  whole  is  concluded  by  an  epilogue,  or 
lengthy  enumeration,  of  the  great  blessings  conferred  upon 
the  world  by  Hammurabi,  and  of  his  greatness  and  benefi- 
cence in  thus  providing  a  rule  which  should  be  for  his  own 
people,  then,  and  thereafter  to  the  end  of  time.  Before  he 
brings  his  epilogue  to  a  close  he  launches  forth  into  a  series 
of  curses  and  anathemas  upon  anyone  who  may  deface  any 
part  of  the  Code ;  venture  to  try  and  amend  or  improve  the 
same ;  or  otherwise  disfigure  the  superlative  quality  of  his 
work.  The  series  of  curses  related  by  the  Reverend  Mr. 
Barham  in  his  "Ingoldsby  Legends"  on  misdoers  and  those 
laid  by  the  Church  in  the  Dark  Ages  on  sacrilegious  per- 
sons are  magnificent.  They  are  no  exaggeration  of  the 
fearful  retribution,  invoked  by  Hammurabi,  on  those  who 
should  attempt  to  injure  his  legal  monument. 

The  edicts  themselves  show  that,  even  at  that  early  date 
in  the  history  of  the  world,  rules  for  the  government  of 
society  or  communities  had  assumed  a  well-developed 
method. 

The  first  thing  that  strikes  one  on  reading  the  Ham- 


THE    HAMMURABI    CODE.  91 

murabi  Code  is  the  lack  of  the  element  of  mercy  and  a 
curious  attempt  to  award  punishments  which  should  be  the 
exact  equivalent  of  each  crime.  We  are  all  familiar  with 
the  "Eye  for  an  eye"  and  "Tooth  for  a  tooth"  form  of 
satisfaction  for  a  crime,  but  Hammurabi  in  many  cases 
throughout  his  Code,  gives  original  ideas  of  this  law  of 
retaliation,  at  once  curious  and  suggestive.  For  instance, 
if  a  man  kills  or  causes  the  death  of  another  man's  son, 
the  son  of  the  man  who  commits  the  injury  is  to  be  put  to 
death.  This,  of  course,  may  be  an  exceedingly  satisfactory 
way  of  getting  an  exact  equivalent  for  the  wrong  com- 
mitted, but  can  hardly  be  regarded  as  satisfactory  to  the 
son,  thus  compelled  to  lose  his  life,  because  his  father  com- 
mitted a  crime  or  did  a  wrong. 

Immediately  after  the  discovery  of  the  Code  an  elaborate 
and  admirably-executed  transcript,  and  translation  of  it 
into  French,  was  published.  This,  again,  has  been  trans- 
lated into  German,  and  this  German  translation  of  a  trans- 
lation, has  been  written  out  in  English  and  recently 
printed.  Of  course,  those  who  are  able  to  read  the  cunei- 
form inscriptions  point  out  that,  admirable  as  it  is  to  be 
able  to  obtain  a  general  idea  of  the  document  without 
delay ;  much  time  and  labor  will  have  to  be  spent  upon  the 
subject  before  the  true  meaning  of  the  Code  can  be  given 
in  book  form  for  the  use  of  students. 

The  question  was  raised,  as  soon  as  the  Code  was  pub- 
lished, whether  or  not  it  had  been  taken  from  Babylon  to 
Susa  by  the  Elamites,  from  whence  it  had  found  its  way  to 
Egypt,  and  so  after  the  expiration  of  a  thousand  years,  had 
been  used  by  Moses,  in  some  greater  or  less  degree  as  an  aid 


92  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

in  the  preparation  of  the  great  Pentatenchal  legislation.  A 
large  number  of  the  Hebrew  scholars,  however,  are  posi- 
tively of  opinion,  that  there  is  no  ground  whatever  for 
thinking  that  the  Hammurabi  Code  was  known  to,  or  came 
within  the  purview  of  Moses.  That  a  great  system  of  legis- 
lation existed  in  countries,  far  more  civilized  than  we  have 
been  inclined  to  admit;  that  very  early  peoples  had  codes 
and  legislation  of  a  very  definite  and  carefully-prepared 
character  ;  and  that  these  codes  were  probably  founded  on  a 
long  series  of  cases,  tried  and  determined  in  able  courts, 
which  would  influence,  and  be  generally  known  to  persons 
of  the  advanced  knowledge  of  the  Egyptians  at  the  time 
of  Moses,  can  easily  be  apprehended.  Some  of  the  general 
principles,  worked  out  by  the  rulers  of  the  earth  centuries 
before  the  time  of  Moses,  must  necessarily  have  been 
familiar  to  the  learned  Egyptians.  The  very  con- 
trast existing  between  the  Hammurabi  Code  and  the 
Pentateuchal  Laws,  would  seem  to  give  prima  facie  evi- 
dence that  Moses  had  no  access  to  the  Babylonian  Laws  as 
epitomized  in  this  Code.  It  has  been  pointed  out  more 
than  once  that  a  special  point  of  difference  between  the  two 
Codes  is  shown,  in  the  matter  of  punishment  by  ordeal, 
and  it  would  be  easy  to  point  out  many  other  very  striking 
differences.  The  laws  of  Moses  are  full  of  sanitary 
provisions,  provisions  for  the  Sabbath,  provisions  against 
unnatural  crimes,  provisions  regulating  a  priesthood. 
None  of  these  subjects  are  dealt  with  in  the  Babylonian 
Code. 

The  subject  is  so  obviously  full  of  interest,  and  is  so  cer- 
tain to  be  dealt  with  in  great  detail,  that  it  is  to  be  hoped 


THE    HAMMURABI    CODE.  93 

that  a  good  English  translation,  made  direct  from  the 
cuneiform  inscription,  will  be  speedily  offered  for  the 
benefit  of  those  who  are  unable  to  read  from  the  fac-similes 
of  the  original,  which  have  already  made  their  appear- 
ance. 


Saint  Mark 's,   Venice. 


Saint  Mark's,  Venice. 


EVEN  in  the  present  age  of  dainty  volumes,  sumptu- 
ous reprints  and  encyclopaedic  issues,  a  feeling  of 
astonishment  cannot  but  be  created  by  the  enter- 
prise of  the  editor  and  publisher  of  the  superb  "La  Basilica 
"di  San  Marco  in  Venezia,  Illustrata  Nella  Storia  e  jSTell' 
"Arte  da  Scrittori  Veneziani"  (Venice:  Ferdinand  On- 
gania.  1877-1891).  The  price  of  unbound  copies  in  port- 
folios was  two  thousand,  three  himdred  and  thirty-three 
francs,  the  edition  being  limited  to  five  hundred  numbered 
copies,  of  which  a  very  few  only  were  subscribed  for  in 
this  country  when  the  work  was  first  published.  As  this 
stupendous  monograph  can  only  be  in  the  possession  of  a 
limited  number  of  library  owners,  and  is  not  likely  to  be 
accessible,  even  for  inspection,  by  the  generality  of  art 
lovers,  it  seems  to  be  a  work  worthy  of  description  in  more 
detail  than  is  usual  in  noticing  ordinary  illustrated  books. 
The  work  has  had  a  very  checkered  existence.  A  publi- 
cation with  the  same  title  and  general  scope  as  the  present 
one  was  begun  by  Messrs  Kreutz  in  the  year  1843,  but, 
notwithstanding  a  handsome  subsidy  from  the  Austrian 
Government,  it  was  not  carried  far,  and  was  "discontinued 


98  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

"shortly  afterwards  on  their  decease."  Xo  mention  is 
made  of  what  became  of  the  subsidy.  The  work  was 
subsequently  taken  in  hand  by  M.  Ongania,  of  Venice,  and 
entailed  on  him  from  twelve  to  fourteen  years'  labor.  It 
is  founded  on  the  original  scheme,  but,  under  encourage- 
ment from  Mr.  Ruskin,  Octave  Uzanne  and  others,  was 
enlarged  in  scope,  and,  notwithstanding  repeated  modifi- 
cations in  minor  details  as  the  volumes  progressed,  has 
become  an  accomplished  fact.  It  is  a  work  comprising 
volumes  of  various  sizes.  Two  are  of  atlas  folio  size, 
seven  of  imperial  quarto,  and  two  of  small  quarto  form. 
It  gives  a  minute  and  complete  illustrated  and  textual 
account  of  almost  every  inch  of  the  "Church  of  Gold,"  the 
mosaics  of  which  cover  about  forty  thousand  square  feet, 
surrounded  by  a  wealth  of  gilding,  bronze  and  Oriental 
marble,  and  is  the  result  of  the  co-operative  assistance  of  a 
small  army  of  enthusiastic  artists,  antiquaries  and  authors. 
The  two  atlas-folio  volumes  have  eighty-six  chromo- 
lithographs, executed  by  Giesecke  &  Devrient,  Winckel- 
mann  and  others,  which  may  challenge  comparison  with 
any  similar  efforts.  Of  these  plates,  twenty-one  give  the 
entire  facade  of  the  church,  and  if  mounted  on  one  canvas 
would  form  a  single  large  illustration  measuring  8  feet 
91/2  inches  in  length  by  5  feet.  9  inches  in  height.  Others 
of  the  plates  are  interesting  as  showing  the  transformation 
of  the  celebrated  facade  under  successive  restorations,  and 
are  followed  by  a  series  of  reproductions  in  colors  of  the 
quaint  and  heavily-gilt  mosaics  which  decorate  the  various 
cupolas  of  the  vestibule  and  north  outermost  aisle.  These 
comprise  a  very  interesting  series  of  drawings  depicting 


SAINT    MARK'S,    VENICE.  99 

the  creation  of  the  world,  followed  by  the  lives  of  Noah, 
Joseph,  Moses  and  scenes  from  the  lives  of  Saint  Mary 
and  the  Saviour.  It  is  impossible  to  notice  each  of  the 
volumes,  which  are  filled  with  hundreds  of  heliographs  of 
details  of  the  altars,  monuments  and  sculptures  of  the 
Basilica ;  but  Volume  VIII  will  probably  best  reward 
examination.  It  contains  ninety-seven  plates  in  large 
quarto,  of  which  twenty-one  are  chromo-lithographs  and 
the  remainder  heliotypes,  many  being  printed  in  colors, 
reproducing  the  collection  of  art  gems  preserved  in  the 
Treasury,  including  princely  Byzantine  bookbindings, 
reliquaries,  crosses,  Venetian  lace,  tapestries,  and  chalices, 
a  pax,  the  gift  of  Cardinal  Grimani,  and  another  pax,  the 
gift  of  Pope  Gregory  XVI. 

It  would  seem  to  be  true,  that  of  the  thousands  of  visitors 
to  St.  Mark's  from  all  parts  of  Europe  and  xVmerica,  but 
a  very  small  percentage  sec  the  greatest  of  all  its  treasures, 
the  Pala  d'Oro,  or  Altar  Front,  forming  a  kind  of  reredos. 
It  is  placed  on  a  solid  support  of  fine  marble,  at  about  a 
metre's  distance  behind  the  high  altar,  but  has  before  it  a 
less  valuable  Pala,  which  serves  for  general  use.  The  Pala 
d'Oro  is  not  exhibited  unless  specially  inquired  for,  it  being 
as  a  rule,  only  uncovered  two  or  three  times  a  year,  on  high 
festivals.  It  was  originally  intended  to  embellish  the 
front  of  the  altar,  and  is  a  remarkable  specimen  of  Byzan- 
tine art,  dating  from  the  year  900.  It  is  filled  with 
quaint,  sacred  figure-subjects  in  enamels,  inlaid  some  in 
plates  of  gold  and  some  in  silver  gilt.  Each  minute  detail 
of  workmanship  and  color  is  shown  in  the  chromo-litho- 
graphs in  Volume  VIII.     The  majority  of  visitors  not 


100  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

knowing  what  a  treasure  stands  behind  the  altar,  fail  to 
produce  the  "silver  key"  which  alone  will  procure  a  view 
of  it;  but,  to  these  and  all  others  who  have  had  no  oppor- 
tunity to  see  the  original,  the  chromos  will  give  genuine 
pleasure.  The  Pala  consists  of  eighty-five  panels  arranged 
in  rows,  containing  representations  of  sacred  personages 
and  subjects,  with  two  devoted  to  the  Doge  OrdelafTo 
Falier,  who  renovated  the  altar-piece  in  1105,  and  Irene, 
the  Empress  of  Constantinople,  in  whose  honor  there  are 
two  lengthy  Latin  inscriptions,  one  recounting  particulars 
of  the  renovation  executed  by  Doge  OrdelafTo  Falier  and 
the  other  a  subsequent  renovation  by  Doge  Pietro  Zain 
in  1209.  The  Pala  gradually  lost  some  of  its  valuable 
jewels  and  other  ornaments,  but  in  1847  the  whole  was 
carefully  repaired  and  the  lost  jewels  replaced  by  votive 
gifts  from  devout  ladies  and  others,  who  gladly  repaired 
the  losses  incurred  by  time  and  carelessness.  On  this  last 
restoration  was  expended  a  sum  of  more  than  twenty 
thousand  francs. 

Among  the  most  interesting  plates  are  eight  added  to 
Volume  II.  by  way  of  appendix,  giving  a  fac-simile  of  a 
celebrated  wood-engraving  executed  in  Venice  by  Mattio 
Pagan  (1556-1569),  of  "The  Procession  of  the  Doge  on 
"Palm  Sunday."  A  large  number  of  the  official  and  civil 
dresses  of  the  period  are  shown,  and  many  different  head- 
dresses of  women  are  to  be  seen  among  the  crowds  at  the 
windows  of  the  Piazza  watching  the  procession  pass.  The 
series  is  also  instructive  as  to  the  insignia  of  office:  it 
shows  the  chair,  ducal  crown  and  sword  of  state  carried 
before  and  after  the  Doge ;  a  set  of  six  silver  trumpets  that 


SAINT  MARK'S,   VENTCK.  101 

have  to  be  supported  by  pages  on  account  of  their  extra- 
ordinary length ;  the  celebrated  official  umbrella  under 
which  the  Doge  walks,  and  so  forth.  Only  three  copies  of 
this  engraving  exist,  and  of  these  the  copy  in  the  Museum 
of  Bassano  (Veneto),  from  which  the  editor  has  taken  this 
appendix,  is  the  only  one  in  Italy. 

The  quotation,  "A  thing  of  beauty  is  a  joy  forever,"  is 
hackneyed  enough,  but  nothing  can  well  be  found  more 
deserving  of  the  phrase,  and  yet  more  entirely  fresh  and 
original,  than  the  "Dedication"  to  Margaret  of  Savoy,  the 
Queen  of  Italy,  and  the  "Preface"  in  black  and  gold,  and 
red  and  blue  letters,  dated  1881,  both  included  in  the  atlas- 
folio  volumes.  They  were  designed  from  manuscripts  in 
the  Royal  Marciana  Library.  We  may  undoubtedly 
accord  to  the  work  the  praise  of  its  being  a  monument  of 
modern  graphic  art  worthy  of  the  great  treasure  it 
illustrates. 

As  may  be  surmised  from  our  observations,  the  text 
forms  but  a  small  portion  of  the  whole  work.  It  is  given 
in  Italian,  with  parts  in  Italian  and  French,  and  some 
portions  in  an  English  translation  as  well.  The  reading 
is  very  curious,  and  from  the  historical  documents  may 
be  gathered  many  disturbing  accounts  of  how  narrowly  the 
Basilica  has  from  time  to  time  escaped  injury  from  would- 
be  benefactors.  About  the  year  1000  a  Doge  who  had 
offended  the  populace  took  refuge  in  Saint  Mark's,  where 
he  defied  the  people,  who  besieged  him  in  the  church,  routed 
him  out,  and  destroyed  the  Basilica  by  fire  and  pillage. 
This  outrage  and  public  wrong  was  righted  by  Doge  Pietro 
Orseolo,  who  set  about  rebuilding  the  fabric  out  of  his  own 


102  HITHER  AND  THITHER. 

property.  It  was  a  noble  work,  nobly  executed,  but  in 
1731  the  Senate  discovered  that  the  Doge,  who  had  been 
subsequently  canonized,  had  not  even  a  chapel  or  so  much 
as  an  altar  in  his  own  Fane.  This  was  bad,  but  worse 
remained,  for  the  Venetians  were  at  that  time  promised 
a  gift  of  "the  whole  of  the  Saint's  right  arm,"  which  was 
to  be  dispatched  from  France  as  a  gift  to  the  Republic. 
Instantly  the  question  arose,  "Where  is  the  relic  to  lie  ?" 
Various  reports  were  taken,  officials  consulted,  this  spot 
suggested  and  that  rejected,  almost  everybody  fortunately 
objecting  on  principle  to  everybody  else's  suggestions ;  but 
all  uniting  in  protesting  against  the  risk  of  tampering 
with  an  inch  of  existing  mosaic.  But  more  urgent  news 
was  received.  The  Republic  was  informed  that  two 
monks,  charged  with  the  relic  were  on  their  way,  bring- 
ing to  St.  Mark's  not  only  the  Saint's  right  arm,  but 
also  "his  thigh  and  his  leg."  Time  did  not  permit  the 
authorities  to  make  an  altar,  much  less  a  chapel ;  and  the 
procurators  of  the  Basilica  drew  up  the  programme  of  the 
ceremony  for  the  translation  of  the  portions  of  the  beatified 
Saint.  The  dean,  in  his  pontifical  vestments,  accom- 
panied by  the  canons,  the  singers  and  other  servants  of  the 
church,  and  by  the  procurators,  was  ordered  to  receive 
the  relic  and  deposit  it  temporarily  in  the  sacristy.  At 
the  same  time  details  were  decreed  for  its  removal  to  an 
altar-chapel  on  the  following  "recurrence  of  the  festival  of 
"the  Saint,"  when  a  solemn  Te  Deum  and  Mass  was  to  be 
sung  in  the  church,  followed  by  vespers,  and  a  solemn  pro- 
cession in  the  Piazza,  "with  the  greatest  possible  pomp," 
accompanied  by  salutes  from  the  ships.     Moreover,   the 


SAINT    MARK'S,    VENICE.  103 

various  schools  or  associations  were  to  be  required  to  attend 
and  provide  suitable  allegorical  figures  or  tableaux  vivants 
''adapted  to  the  occasion."  Happily,  however,  with  the 
reception  of  the  relic  and  its  temporary  depositure  in  the 
Treasury,  matters  rested ;  and  it  is  to  be  hoped,  in  the 
interest  of  this  wonderful  pile,  that  for  all  time  this 
arrangement  may  remain  undisturbed. 


Haverford  College. 


Haverford  College. 


THE  history  of  Haverford  College1  for  the  first  sixty 
years  of  its  existence,  prepared  by  a  committee  of 
the  Alumni  Association,  consists  of  an  introduc- 
tory account  of  the  preparation  of  the  work,  an  amusingly- 
written  proem,  and  nineteen  chapters  in  which  various 
members  of  the  association  have  related  the  growth  of  the 
college,  each  writer  treating  of  a  particular  period  or  of 
some  marked  characteristic  of  the  institution,  the  volume 
closing  with  an  elaborate  appendix,  giving  lists  of  the 
students,  the  members  of  the  faculty,  its  officers  and  man- 
agers, the  officers  of  the  Alumni  Association,  and  the 
orators,  poets  and  prize-winners.  Necessarily,  the  history 
is  one  of  especial  interest  to  those  who  have  spent  happy 
years  within  the  precincts  of  the  college,  but  it  is  also  a 
book  of  general  interest  to  those  who  value  progress  in 
educational  centers.  Like  all  books  made  up  of  con- 
tributed articles,  it  may,  perhaps,  lack  some  of  the  unities 
of  form  and  sequence  usual  in  a  book  compiled  by  a  single 
writer,  yet  that  very  lack  of  unity  is  compensated  for  by 

1  A  History  of  Haverford  College  for  the  first  sixty  year9  of  its 
existence.     Philadelphia :    Porter  &  Coates,  1892. 


108  HITHER   AND    THITHEB. 

the  many-sided  views  of  the  life  and  growth  of  the  College, 
due  to  the  collaboration  of  different  writers.  It  was  pro- 
posed as  long  since  as  1877  to  publish  a  descriptive  and 
illustrated  history  of  the  College,  from  its  beginning  as  a 
school  to  the  present  time;  but  after  a  good  deal  of  hard 
work  had  been  accomplished,  the  result  proved  "little  or 
"nothing"  having  regard  to  what  was  wanted,  and  in  1884 
the  intention  was  abandoned.  The  idea  was  revived  in 
1888,  and  carried  forward  to  a  successful  conclusion. 

The  College  had  its  origin  in  1830,  through  the  recogni- 
tion of  the  lack  of  education — especially  of  higher  educa- 
tion— among  Friends,  and  during  that  and  the  following 
year  the  subject  was  ventilated  in  the  columns  of  The 
Friend,  known  in  latter  times  by  double  entendre  as 
The  Square  Friend.  Outlines  of  a  plan  for  the  establish- 
ment and  maintenance  of  a  Friends'  central  school  were 
reduced  to  form,  and  from  that  time,  through  periods  of 
trouble  and  even  disaster,  brightened  by  periods  overflow- 
ing with  promise,  the  institution  has  grown  to  its  present 
proportions.  It  would  be  too  long  a  story  to  relate  how, 
from  its  small  beginnings,1  the  school  grew,  sometimes 
prospering,  more  often  failing,  till  at  the  end  of  the  sum- 
mer of  1815  the  regretful  conclusion  was  reached  that  it 
would  not  be  right,  with  the  certain  prospects  of  a  large 
accumulation  of  debt,  to  continue  the  school  after  the  close 
of  that  term.  The  time  of  disaster  is  not  always  one  of 
apathy,  and  out  of  the  greatness  of  the  troubles  which 
then  weighed  down  the  school  arose  a  spirit  of  enthusiasm, 

1  Opened  Oct.  28,  1833,  with  twenty-one  students,  by  the  Haver- 
ford  School  Association,  successor  to  the  Friends'  Central  School 
Association. 


HAVEByORD    COLLEGB.  109 

in  which  the  love  of  the  old  students  for  the  home  of  their 
education  showed  itself  in  a  highly  practical  form.  A 
general  call  upon  the  Haverford  students  was  made,  by  a 
self-constituted  committee,  to  meet  for  an  old-fashioned 
game  of  foot-ball  and  a  meal  in  the  old  dining-room.  The 
scheme  was  a  "bold  and  novel  one."  On  the  appointed 
day  the  "foot-ball  flew  vigorously,  as  of  yore ;  married  and 
"unmarried,  farmers  and  men  of  merchandise,  busy  men 
"and  idlers,  all  showing  that  what  the  cares  of  life  had 
"taken  from  their  youth  was  revived  in  breathing  the  air 
"of  their  old  haunts."  Xo  one  could  doubt  what  the  result 
would  be.  A  strong  pull  and  a  pull  all  together  was 
resolved  upon.  Steps  were  taken  to  raise  funds,  and  raised 
they  were,  so  that  in  a  few  months  Haverford  was  placed 
on  a  durable  foundation. 

After  a  suspension  of  two  years  and  eight  months,  the 
building  was  reopened  in  May,  1848.  In  a  short  time  the 
school  became  a  college,1  and  although  it  has  since  passed 
through  many  periods  of  anxiety,  "Haverford  at  sixty" 
was  a  solid  institution.  It  is  well  remarked  by  the  writer 
who  deals  with  the  subject  in  the  History,  that  colleges  are 
"not  money-making  concerns,  but  money-spending,"  that 
"a  college  flourishes  at  the  cost  of  its  treasury,  its  profit- 
"and-loss  account  is  all  debit."  Inasmuch  as  it  can  spend 
any  amount  of  money  in  adding  to  its  educational  re- 
sources, it  follows  that  probably  "no  class  of  institutions 
"is  more  hungry  for  money  or  more  constantly  poor."  And 
summing  up  the  position  in  four  words,  "Haverford  is 
"no  exception."     Her  endowment,   however,   lias   slowly 

1 1856. 


110  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

but  steadily  grown,  until  she  has  now  $220,000  invested 
funds,  besides  an  amount  estimated  roughly  at  $600,000 
in  buildings,  lands,  library,  museum  and  appliances. 

Founded  and  managed  by  Friends  and  on  Friends' 
principles,  the  restrictions  imposed  on  the  students  were 
somewhat  stricter  than  those  which  prevail  in  the  gener- 
ality of  schools  and  colleges ;  but  these,  both  as  to  courses 
of  education  and  in  the  recognized  sports,  have  been  modi- 
fied from  time  to  time.  The  subject  of  lighting  proved  a 
matter  of  much  debate.  Gas  was  at  one  time  regarded  as 
a  very  questionable  improvement.  It  is  recorded  that  no 
less  a  person  than  Horace  Binney,  the  Philadelphia 
lawyer,  denounced  its  use  in  schools  and  such  like  build- 
ings as  criminal,  in  that  it  would  lead  to  endless  conflagra- 
tions and  explosions.  It  was  not  until  1852  that  the 
buildings  generally  were  lighted  with  gas,  and  in  November 
of  that  year  the  managers  expressed  their  belief  that,  with 
attention  to  the  management  of  the  works,  it  would  prove 
an  economical  light.  In  1S65,  it  was  proved  that  Mr. 
Binney 's  fears  had  some  justification,  for  in  the  course 
of  that  winter  a  gas  meter,  under  the  stairs,  by  the  dining- 
room,  exploded,  injuring  several  of  the  students.  At 
that  time  the  splendor  of  electricity  as  a  common  illu- 
minator was  not  thought  of.  But  beyond  lessons,  gas  and 
dress,  a  huger  question  created  much  discussion.  Boys 
may  learn  or  they  may  not;  but,  eat  they  must.  The 
senior  class  was  entitled  to  a  lunch  of  pie,  and  precedent 
had  established  that  in  a  short  five  minutes'  recess  at 
eleven  in  the  forenoon  each  senior's  allowance,  fixed  "at 
"90  degrees  of  circumference,"  should  be  fetched  by  the 


HAVKRFORD    COLLEGK.  Ill 

"scavenger"  or  class  deputy  from  the  kitchen.  Now,  four 
pies  to  a  class  of  thirteen  gave  three  extra  pieces,  and  these 
were  usually  retained  by  the  "scavenger."  The  writer 
in  the  "History,"  who  touches  upon  the  matter,  states 
"with  regret"  that  this  luncheon  was  abolished  by  act  of 
faculty  in  1872,  and  adds  that  a  cruel  slander  was  spread 
to  the  effect  that  the  act  was  brought  about  through 
the  too  great  love  of  pie  manifested  by  the  class  of  '72. 
That  class  is  called  "much  slandered,"  for  though  they 
were  "young,  turbulent  and  ridiculous,"  they  were  not 
bad  at  heart.  Perhaps  the  truth  has  been  missed.  Is 
it  not  more  reasonable  to  think  that  the  act  proceeded 
from  a  feeling  of  mercy  in  the  minds  of  the  faculty  toward 
the  scavenger,  who  must  have  imperiled  his  life  in  devour- 
ing three  such  pieces  of  pie  a  day  ? 

Music,  also,  was  a  sore  point.  It  was  not  exactly  encour- 
aged by  the  college  authorities,  but  by  1876  it  had  received 
sufficient  attention  to  let  the  students  boast  of  possessing 
quite  a  respectable  quartette,  with  some  additional  talent 
for  the  choruses.  When,  however,  instrumental  music 
was  attempted  by  an  overzealous  pupil,  who  tried  flute- 
playing  in  his  bed,  the  appearance  in  the  doorway  of  a  kind 
and  familiar  face  gazing  long  and  sadly  upon  him  caused 
him  to  cease.  As  the  reproachful  face  withdrew  the  ears 
of  the  offending  student  were  assailed  with  the  laconic 
rebuke  "And  thee's  a  Friend's  child."  In  earlier  days, 
when  all  music  was  under  ban,  it  "happened"  that  the 
simple  jewsharp  would  find  its  way  in.  As  each  harp 
was  confiscated  as  soon  as  detected,  it  is  a  curious  problem 
what  became   of  the  barrelful   of  harps   that  had  been 


112  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

gathered  from  the  lovers  of  the  charm  which  "soothes  the 
"savage  breast." 

The  contests  in  cricket  were  mighty  and  numerous. 
The  game  was  introduced  at  Haverford  in  1836  by  an 
English  gardener  named  William  Carvill,  and  "it  is 
"thought  that  at  Haverford  College  cricket  was  first 
"learned  by  Americans  and  adopted  as  a  game."  The 
successes  and  defeats  of  the  College  teams,  however,  are 
too  generally  known  to  require  recitation.  The  records  of 
"the  famous  seven  hit"  by  Howard  Comfort  and  a  hun- 
dred other  incidents  of  the  College  matches  are  given  and 
dwelt  upon  with  pride,  but  the  ingenious  student  who  tried 
to  save  labor,  yet  provide  sport  or  at  least  practice,  by 
inventing  a  "catapult  bowler,"  so  that  cricket  could  be 
practiced  with  as  few  players  as  are  required  for  a  game  of 
solitaire,  met  with  failure,  for  the  catapult  refused  to 
work.  Nevertheless,  Haverford  cricket  has  continued  to 
triumph. 

The  library,  it  appears,  is  a  growing  and  increasingly 
valuable  adjunct.  It  numbers  over  thirty  thousand 
volumes.  A  list  of  the  rare  and  curious  books  is  given, 
among  which  may  be  mentioned  fac-similes  of  the  three 
great  codices  of  the  Bible,  the  Codex  Alexandrinus,  the 
Codex  Vaticanus  and  the  Codex  Sinaitieus. 

The  "History"  has  some  sixty  well-executed  illustra- 
tions, including  views  of  the  principal  points  of  interest 
connected  with  the  buildings,  and  twenty-one  portraits  of 
the  more  notable  of  its  presidents  and  patrons. 


Dr.  Sommers 
"Le  Morte  Darthur. 


j  j 


Dr.  Sommer's 
"Le  Morte  Darthur." 


IT  is  remarkable  that  it  should  have  been  reserved  to  a 
Prussian  scholar  to  produce  the  monumental  reprint 
"Le  Morte  Darthur,"  !  which  was  published  1889- 
1891.  As  a  specimen  of  typography,  this  work  has  few 
equals,  and  Dr.  Sommer,  as  the  result  of  four  years'  almost 
continuous  labor,  effected,  thanks  to  the  German  Govern- 
ment, who  granted  three  subsidies,  a  result  which  must 
delight  all  bibliophiles,  and  at  the  same  time  reflect  the 
greatest  credit  upon  himself.  The  first  volume,  covering 
eight  hundred  and  sixty-two  pages,  is  a  reprint  from  Earl 
Spencer's  copy,  printed  page  for  page  and  line  for  line. 
Only  two  copies  of  Caxton's  editio  princeps  of  1485  are 
extant.  That  belonging  to  Lord  Spencer  was  acquired  at 
Lloyd's  sale  in  1816  for  £325,  but  lacks  eleven  leaves, 
which  were  replaced  by  fac-simile  leaves  executed  from 
the  only  other  copy  in  existence,  which,  after  belonging  to 

lLe  Morte  Darthur.  By  Syr  Thomas  Malory.  The  original 
edition  of  William  Caxton  now  reprinted  and  edited  with  an  intro- 
duction and  glossary  by  H.  Oskar  Sommer,  Ph.D.,  with  an  essay  on 
Malory's  prose  style  by  Andrew  Lang,  M.  A.  London:  David  Nutt 
(3  vols.),  1889-1891. 


116  HITHEB    AND    THITHER. 

the  Harleian  collection,  was  sold  to  the  Earl  of  Jersey, 
and  was  one  of  the  gems  of  the  library  at  Osterley  Park. 
This  copy  is  perfect,  and  on  the  death  of  the  owner  came 
into  the  market,  when  a  spirited  contest  for  its  ownership 
naturally  ensued.  The  British  Museum  hid  £1,800  for  it, 
but  there  stopped.  The  prize  fell  to  Mrs.  Abby  E.  Pope, 
of  Brooklyn,  ~N.  Y.,  who  paid  £1,950  and  became  the 
envied  owner  of  the  volume. 

The  Caxton  edition  is  printed  in  black  letter,  and  the 
type  throughout  is  that  described  by  Mr.  Blades  as  4*. 
The  volume  has  no  title-page,  the  lines  are  spaced  out 
to  an  even  length  of  4%  inches,  and  thirty-eight  lines  make 
a  full  page.1  It  is  without  folios,  headlines  or  catchwords, 
and  the  initial  letters  are  printed  from  wood.  Those  to 
"Books"  are  ornamental  letters  five  lines  high,  the  initials 
to  "Chapters"  being  only  three  lines  high.  Dr.  Sommer 
has  used  handsome  Roman  type  in  lieu  of  black  letters, 
but  at  the  beginning  of  volume  I,  has  provided  the  reader 
with  a  fac-simile  of  page  75  from  Earl  Spencer's  copy. 
The  next  edition  after  Caxton's  was  printed  by  Wynkyn  de 
Worde  in  1498,  in  folio,  and  Lord  Spencer  owned  the  only 
known  copy.  Of  a  second  edition  by  the  same  celebrated 
printer,  dated  1529,  the  only  existing  copy,  known  as 
Archdeacon  Wrangham's,  has  been  acquired  by  the  British 
Museum.  The  Earl  Spencer  collection  is  now  the 
property  of  the  Manchester  Public  Library,  in  England. 
Only  nine  other  reprints  prior  to  Sommer's  were  published, 
of  which  the  best  known  are  Southey's  edition  of  1817  and 

1 A   few   pages   have   less   than   thirty-eight   lines   and   some   have 
thirty-nine. 


LE   MORTE   DARTHUR. 


117 


Mr.  Thomas  Wright's  two  editions  of  1856  and  1866, 
included  in  the  "Library  of  Old  Authors."1 

Volumes  II  and  III  of  Sommer's  edition  contain  the 
critical  and  literary  portion  of  his  work,  and  also  Mr. 
Lang's  essay.  One  of  the  most  valuable  contributions  in 
these  volumes  consists  of  a  "List  of  Names  and  Places" 
in  the  "Morte  Darthur,"  being  the  "first  complete  and 
"critical  index"  to  this  work  ever  published.  In  it  are 
from  eight  hundred  and  fifty  to  one  thousand  names  which 
occur  in  the  text.  It  is  printed  in  seventy-four  double 
columns,  and  an  idea  of  its  laborious  character  may  be 
gathered  from  noticing  that  Arthur  fills'  eight,  Galahad 
three,  Launcelot  seven,  and  Tristram  six  columns 
respectively. 

The  literary  value  of  the  "Origin  of  English  Romance" 
has  been  variously  estimated.  Sir  Walter  Scott  styles  it 
the  best  of  all  English  romances,  but  old  Roger  Ascham, 
the  Latin  secretary  or  tutor  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  judged 
otherwise.  He  was  a  learned  man,  and  while  the  Queen 
paid  him  a  salary  of  £20  a  year  only  for  his;  services,  she 
nevertheless  "esteemed  him  highly;"  for  on  his  death  she 
declared  she  "would  rather  have  lost  £10,000  than  her 
"tutor,  Ascham."  In  his  well-known  "Toxophilus,"2  and 
also  his  "Scholemaster,"3  he  discusses  these  books  of 
"cheuvelrie."  In  the  latter  work  he  remarks  of  the  "Morte 
"d'Arthur,"  "The  whole  pleasure  of  this  booke  standeth  in 

1  A  Series  of  Rare  Works  Collected  and  Printed  under  the  Title  of 
"Library  of  Old  Authors."  London:  John  Russell  Smith.  1856,  eto. 
61  vols.,  8vo. 

Mto.,  1545.  Ascham's  works  are  accessible  in  the  "Library  of  Old 
"Authors"  (4  vols.). 

*8vo.,  1570.     Printed  posthumously. 


118  HITHER  AND   THITHER. 

"two  especyall  poyntes  in  open  mans  slaghter  and  bolde 
"bawdrie,  in  which  booke  those,  be  counted  the  noblest 
"knights  that  doe  kill  most  men  without  any  quarrell  and 
"commit  foulest  adoulteries  by  sutlest  shiftes."  Mr.  Gil- 
roy,  more  recently,  well  said  that  Malory's  romance  is  as 
truly  the  epic  of  the  English,  as  the  Iliad  is  the  epic  of  the 
Greek  mind.  The  Arthurian  romances  have  been  a  glean- 
ing ground  for  many  of  our  greatest  poets  and  writers ; 
notably  Spenser  in  "The  Faerie  Queene;"  Tennyson  in 
"The  Idylls'  of  the  King;"  Swinburne  in  his  "Trystram  of 
"Lyonesse ;"  Arnold  in  his  "Tristram  and  Iseult,"  and 
Morris  in  his  "Defence  of  Guenevere." 

Of  Sir  Thomas  Malory  little  is  known.  He  was  a 
knight  and  an  amateur  antiquary,  born  about  1430,  and 
completed  his  compilation  fifteen  years  before  Caxton 
printed  it.  Caxton  finished  printing  the  book  in  the  abbey 
of  Westminster  on  the  last  day  of  July,  1485,  a  work 
which  he  had  undertaken,  he  tells  us,  at  the  request  of 
"many  noble  and  dyvers  gentylmen  of  the  royame  of 
"England."  Malory  was  a  compiler  rather  than  an  author, 
yet  it  should  be  remembered  that  he  did  not  servilely 
copy  his  originals,  but,  after  studying  the  various  versions, 
impressed  upon  the  whole  the  stamp  of  his  own  indi- 
viduality, and  in  doing  this  combined  English  and  French 
romances. 

The  source  of  each  portion  of  the  cycle  of  romances1  has 

1  Richard  Jones  in  his  "Growth  of  the  Idylls  of  the  Kins"  (1894), 
says:  "It  appears  that  five  great  cycles  of  legends, — 1,  the  Arthur, 
"Guinevere,  and  Merlin  cycle;  2,  the  Round  Table  cycle;  3,  the 
"Lancelot  cycle;  4,  the  Holy  Grail  cycle;  5,  the  Tristan  cycle, — at  first 
"developed  independently,  were  later  connected  together  about  the 
"mediaeval  hero,  King  Arthur.  Even  to  run  through  all  the  available 
"versions  of  the  related  legends  is  the  task  of  a  lifetime." 


LE    MORTE    DARTHUR.  119 

been  traced  with  great  skill  by  Dr.  Sommer  to  different 
manuscripts,  but  from  whence  the  several  romances  were 
originally  drawn  by  the  writers  of  these  manuscripts  is 
still  a  fertile  source  for  debate.  During  the  fifth  century 
a  colony  of  Britons  took  refuge  in  Armorica  from  the 
Saxons,  and  the  memory  of  Arthur  and  his  knights  was 
preserved  there,  as  fresh  as  in  Wales  or  Cornwall.  Hun- 
dreds of  minstrels  seem  to  have  composed  or  adapted  a 
variety  of  poems  relating  incidents,  now  familiar  to  readers 
of  Arthurian  romance,  and  out  of  these,  again,  grew  prose 
romances.1  In  this  way  their  origin  is,  in  one  sense,  as 
disputable  as  is  the  source  of  Macpherson's  "Ossian." 
The  question  of  Gildas,  an  historian  of  the  sixth  century, 
styled  by  Gibbon  "The  British  Jeremiah,"  and  Xennius, 
who  is  alleged,  in  the  ninth  century,  to  have  written  his 
jejune  "Narrative"  in  the  form  of  dry  epitome,  cannot 
be  discussed  here.  There  is  little  doubt,  however,  that  the 
legends  of  Arthur  belonged  originally  to  South  Wales,  but 
were  modified  by  incidents  and  elements  afterwards  intro- 
duced into  them. 

When  we  come  to  Geoffrey  of  Monmouth,  who  wrote  his 
celebrated  "Historia"  or  "Chronicon"  in  the  twelfth 
century,  we  are  on  much  safer  ground.  According  to  his 
own  statement,  he  received  in  1128  a  manuscript  from  one 
Walter  Calenius,  an  archdeacon  of  Oxford,  who  in  that 
century  traveled  in  Brittany  and  collected  the  legends 
subsequently  worked  up  by  Geoffrey  into  his  "true  history" 
of  the  Britons.    According  to  Polydore  Vergil,  who  is  fol- 

1  As  C.  F.  Keary  remarks  in  the  Diet,  of  Nat.  Biog.,  the  bibli- 
ography ©f  the  mythic  Arthur  is  almost  infinite. 


120 


HITHER    AND    THITHER. 


lowed  by  many  writers,  Geoffrey  invented  many  of  the 
legends  he  purposed  to  translate,  but,  be  this  as  it  may,  his 
"Chronicon"  is  one  of  the  corner-stones  of  romance.  There 
is  little  doubt  that  he  is  responsible  for  much  embellish- 
ment of  the  stories  he  narrated.  He  scorned  to  be  bound 
by  simple  facts  of  history,  and  tells  us,  with  dry  humor, 
that  he  left  records  of  such  mere  details  as  names,  dates 
and  places  to  his  friends  and  contemporaries.  Caradoc  of 
Llancarvan,  William  of  Malmesbury  and  Henry  of  Hunt- 
ingdon reveled,  it  is  true,  in  the  ancient  history  of  the 
kings  of  the  Britons,  but  "he  alone  had  the  precious  book 
"which  he  had  taken  care  to  translate."  Monsieur  Paulin 
Paris  will  not  admit  that  any  Calenius  manuscript  ever 
existed,  and  many  agree  in  thinking  that  it  has  no  more 
actuality  than  the  "Old  Plays,"  out  of  which  Sir  Walter 
Scott  so  happily  "invented"  quotations,  as  headings  for 
chapters  of  his  novels. 

The  Arthur  legends,  as  we  have  them,  practically  origi- 
nated in  Geoffrey's  "Historia,"  published  1138,  and  repub- 
lished 1147,  but  only  in  a  partial  form,  for  no  mention  was 
then  made  of  the  Round  Table.  That  was  introduced  a  few 
years  later  in  Wace's  "History  of  the  Britons,"  published 
1155,  and  travelers,  when  they  visit  Winchester,  in  Eng- 
land, are  regaled  to  the  present  day  by  a  sight  of  the  very 
table,  round  which  Arthur  and  his  favorite  twelve  knights 
sat.  If  any  incredulous  visitor  should  remark  that  it  does 
not  in  the  least  resemble  the  accounts  of  the  table  made  by 
Merlin,  as  given  in  the  romances,  nor  any  known  record 
of  the  smaller  table  to  seat  thirteen ;  he  will  be  silent  when 
he  is  told  that  Henry  VIII.  showed  the  Winchester  table 


LE    MORTE    DARTHUR.  121 

to  Francis  L,  and  stated  "that  it  was  the  one  used  by  the 
"British  King." 

After  Geoffrey's  time  the  legend  grew  apace,  and  many 
additions  were  made  by  Layamon,  Wace  and  Walter  Mapes 
or  Map.  Up  to  this  point  chivalry  and  routs  had  mainly 
characterized  the  romances.  Walter  Map  transformed 
the  whole  cycle  by  the  infusion  of  Lancelot  and  the  quest 
of  the  Holy  Grail,  which  stands  out  as  the  main  subject  of 
the  romances  collected  by  Malory. 1  The  Grail  was  a  sacred 
vessel  originally  presented  by  Solomon  to  the  Queen  of 
Sheba;  or,  if  not  so  old,  it  was  the  dish  which  twenty 
centuries  ago  our  Lord  used  at  the  Last  Supper.  Being 
stolen  by  one  of  Pilate's  servants,  it  was  next  used  by  the 
Governor  when  he  publicly  washed  his  hands  at  the  time 
of  the  Crucifixion,  after  which  it  was  presented  to  St. 
Joseph  of  Arimatha?a,  who  collected  in  it  the  Blood  which 
flowed  from  the  five  wounds  of  the  Saviour.  It  was  alleged 
that  it  had  been  carried  to  Heaven,  but  in  1101  it  was  cap- 
tured by  the  Genoese  and  Pisan  crusaders  at  Cesarea,  and 
the  former  resigned  to  the  Pisans  all  other  booty  in  con- 
sideration of  being  awarded  this  one  treasure.  It  was 
preserved  with  great  reverence  in  the  Sacristy  of  San 
Lorenzo,  at  Genoa,  till  1809,  when  the  French  seized  it 
and  carried  it  to  Paris,  from  whence  it  was  returned  to 
San  Lorenzo  by  the  allies  in  1815.  It  was  supposed  to  have 
been  made  of  a  single  piece  of  emerald,  and  as  early  as 

1  At  least,  writes  Prof.  Saintsbury  in  "The  Flourishing  of 
"Romance  and  the  Rise  of  Allegory"  (1897),  "it  may  be  asserted  with 
"the  utmost  confidence  that  it  has  not  been  proved  that  he  did  not." 
If  we  accept  Map,  we,  of  course,  deny  the  claims  of  Robert  de  Borron 
and  Chrestien  de  Troyes. 


122  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

1500  it  was  decreed  that  to  make  experiments  upon  it  by 
touch  of  gold,  stones,  coral  or  any  other  substance,  to  test 
its  composition,  should  be  punishable  by  death.  On  its 
restoration,  in  1815,  the  Sacro  Catino,  as  it  is  now  desig- 
nated, was  so  tightly  packed  that  it  was  broken  between 
Turin  and  Genoa,  but  the  glass  fragments  have  been 
exquisitely  refitted  and  secured  by  beautiful  gold  filigree 
work,  and  it  is  one  of  the  most  treasured  relics  of  Italy. 

At  the  end  of  book  XVII  of  the  "Morte  Darthur," 
Caxton  writes:  "Thus  endeth  thistory  of  the  Sancgreal 
"that  was  breuely  drawen  oute  of  the  Frensshe  in  to 
"Englysshe,  the  whiche  is  a  story  cronycled  for  one  of  the 
"truest  and  the  holyest  that  is  in  thys  worlde." 

Many  writers  have  seen  in  Malory's  Galahad,  Percival, 
Sir  Bors  de  Ganis  (or  Wales)  and  Lancelot  the  antitypes 
of  the  Bunyan  heroes,  Christian,  Faithful  and  Hopeful, 
and  some  have  read  in  them  Malory's  testimony  to  the  sor- 
rows of  Henry  II.  Malory's  Lancelot  is  a  truer  picture 
of  human  character,  under  the  form  of  a  fictitious  hero, 
than  many  that  would  satisfy  modern  analysts.  The 
romancist  depicts  a  pupil  of  Merlin,  who  is  at  warfare  with 
his  own  flesh ;  but  whose  sins  render  it  impossible  for  him 
to  fully  achieve  the  quest.  The  gentle  Sir  Galahad  par- 
takes of  the  wonderful  food,  but  when  Sir  Lancelot  enters 
through  the  door  where  the  Grail  is,  it  is  as  though  he  was 
burned  by  fire,  so  that  he  lies  for  twenty-four  days  and 
twenty-four  nights  as  though  he  was  dead.  After  again 
falling  into  sin  he  repents,  and  in  sorrow  creeps  to  his 
grave  without  any  marvelous  conversion  or  periods  of 
exaltation.    He  becomes  a  hermit  and  afterwards  a  priest ; 


LE    MORTE    DARTHUR.  123 

and  in  a  quiet  life  of  prayer  and  preaching  sings  his  daily 
mass  till,  in  gentle  hopefulness,  he  is  gathered  to  his  rest. 
The  story  is  all  the  truer  because  a  peaceful  end  is  the  lot 
of  the  majority  of  mankind. 


Sevres  Porcelain. 


Sevres  Porcelain. 


THE  purchase  of  Sevres'  porcelain  has  always  been 
reserved  to  the  wealthy,  for  the  simple  reason  that 
no  other  persons  can  afford  to  buy  it.  Those 
who  appreciate  this  porcelain  can  thoroughly  enjoy 
themselves  while  examining  a  splendid  volume  in  folio 
size,  published  by  John  C.  Ximmo,  of  London,  entitled 
''The  Soft  Porcelain  of  Sevres,"  *  with  an  historical  intro- 
duction by  Edouard  Garnier.  The  treatise  of  thirty-two 
pages  is  illustrated  by  fifty  plates,  representing  two  hun- 
dred and  fifty  water-color  subjects.  The  Chinese  claim 
to  have  made  porcelain  for  more  than  two  thousand 
years,  but  it  was  not  known  how  to  make  it  in  Europe 
until  the  seventeenth  century.  Monsieur  Garnier  cur- 
sorily notices  the  introduction  of  Chinese  porcelain  into 
Europe  by  the  Venetians  in  the  fourteenth  century,  when 
from  its  beauty  and  novelty  a  very  general  belief  pre- 
vailed that  it  was  possessed  of  magic  qualities.  A  little 
later  the  Portuguese  and  the  Dutch  introduced  the  pre- 
cious ware,  and  whilst  the  novelty  wore  off,  and  it  was 

1  The  Soft  Porcelain  of  Sevres,  with  an  historical  introduction  by 
Edouard  Garnier.     London:    John  C.  Nimmo,  1892. 


128  HITHER   AND    THITHER. 

ascertained  what  the  Chinese  put  into  it,  still  its  manu- 
facture could  not  be  accomplished  in  Europe  because  the 
requisite  kaolin  or  white  clay  which  constituted  the  porce- 
lain paste  had  not  been  found  in  European  countries. 
About  1709  or  1711  a  man  named  Bottger,  "who  was  try- 
ing to  find  out  the  secret  of  porcelain-making  for  the 
"Elector  of  Saxony,"  discovered  the  location  of  the  neces- 
sary materials  by  an  expedient  of  his  valet,  who,  for  want 
of  the  proper  hair  powder  to  dress  his  master's  wig,  had 
used  instead  a  kind  of  white  powdered  clay  he  had  found 
in  the  neighborhood.  M.  Bottger  was  astonished  at  the 
unusual  weight  of  his  wig,  and  having  questioned  his 
servant,  proceeded  out  of  a  not  unnatural  curiosity  to 
examine  the  clay,  when,  to  his  delight,  he  found  that  it  was 
the  true  kaolin  or  hard  porcelain.  Quickly  a  factory  was 
established  at  Meissen,  a  few  miles  from  Dresden,  and  the 
porcelain  then  and  since  made  there  is  generally  called 
"Dresden."  The  discovery,  however,  of  "soft"  porcelain 
had  been  made  in  France  several  years  previously,  in  1695, 
near  Limoges,  although  nearly  twenty-five  years  elapsed 
before  its  right  use  was  attained.  In  porcelain  the  terms 
hard  and  soft  are  intended  to  express  the  capability  of 
resisting  heat  when  the  finished  ware  is  submitted  to  the 
process  of  "firing,"1  and  the  "old  Sevres"  comprises  only 
"soft"  porcelain  manufactured  prior  to  about  1770,  after 
which  date  Sevres  china  was  made  of  "hard"  clay.  The 
volume  by  Nimmo  relates  to  the  former  ware. 

The  styles  of  "Sevres"  are    broadly  divided  into  three 
classes,  the  Pompadour  or  Rocaille,  1753-1763;  the  style 

1  Gamier   ( note  to  page  23 ) . 


SEVRES    PORCELAIN.  129 

Louis  Quinze,  1763-1 7 8 G,  and  the  style  Louis  Seize,  1786- 
1703.  Nearly  every  class  of  article  has  been  made  of 
porcelain,  including  entire  tables,  clocks  and  candelabra, 
while  in  1780  Mademoiselle  Beaupre,  an  actress,  appeared 
in  a  carriage  of  which  the  panels  consisted  of  exquisitely- 
painted  porcelain.  The  cost  of  choice  specimens  is  almost 
fabulous,  for  not  only  was  its  manufacture  the  work  of 
skilled  artisans,  but  the  best  artists  were  employed  in 
the  coloring  and  decoration ;  yet  time  and  again  the  plaques 
and  vases  broke  in  the  process  of  "firing,"  frequently  three 
or  four  of  these  expensive  gems  of  art  being  destroyed 
to  one  that  came  safely  through  the  furnace.  Naturally, 
frauds  of  all  kinds  have  been  perpetrated,  and  had  the 
Sevres  factory  been  five  times  its  actual  size,  and  had 
ceaseless  work  been  carried  on,  still  its  output  would  have 
fallen  far  short  of  the  amount  offered  for  sale  in  the 
market.  It  is,  therefore,  a  ticklish  task  to  turn  collector 
of  old  Sevres,  and  a  purchaser  needs  much  knowledge. 

One  of  the  oldest  and  most  amusing  frauds  was  the  pre- 
sentation in  1811  to  Louis  XVIII.  of  a  splendid  Sevres 
dejeuner  service,  with  medallion  portraits  of  Louis  XIV. 
and  celebrated  persons  of  his  court.  It  was  used  at  the 
Tuileries  for  two  years  before  the  deception  was  discovered. 
The  service  was  at  last  "suspected"  by  a  connoisseur  and 
sent  to  headquarters  for  examination,  when  it  was  promptly 
condemned ;  and  the  King  "having  no  further  use  for  it," 
it  has  been  pilloried  in  a  case  at  the  Musee  Ceramique  as  an 
example  of  "fraudulent  imitation." 

The  manufacture  in  France  has  always  been  under 
royal  patronage,  and  in  1710  two  workmen  named  Dubois, 

9 


130  HITHER   AND  THITHER. 

who  had  previously  been  engaged  at  Chantilly,  proposed  to 
Monsieur  Orry  de  Fulvy,  brother  to  Philibert  Orry, 
Comptroller  of  Finance  under  Louis  XV.,  to  reveal  to 
him  the  secret  of  the  composition  paste.  Desiring  to  rival 
the  Dresden  manufacture,  a  factory  was  started  at  Vin- 
cennes,  but  after  three  years'  experiments  and  the  expendi- 
ture of  sixty  thousand  francs  the  brothers  Dubois  were 
discharged  "for  bad  conduct,"  and  the  scheme  languished. 
Madame  de  Pompadour,  however,  stepped  into  the  breach 
and  recommended  the  King  to  take  the  matter  into  hia 
own  hands  and  save  the  large  sums  that  went  out  of  France 
to  purchase  Dresden  china.  The  King  was  nothing  loth, 
and  M.  Orry  de  Fulvy  having  "purchased  the  secret"  from 
a  Monsieur  Gravant,  who  had  for  some  time  been  at  the 
factory  under  the  Dubois,  a  "company  was  formed  under 
"the  name  of  Adam,"1  his  name  being  used  to  conceal  that 
of  the  other  real  proprietors.  A  capital  of  three  hundred 
and  fifty  thousand  livres  was  provided,  of  which  the  King 
contributed  one  hundred  thousand,  and,  under  the  director- 
ship of  Monsieur  Boileau,  the  venture  was  crowned  with 
success.  Improvements  of  various  kinds  were  introduced 
into  the  manufacture,  and  the  services  of  eminent  chemists, 
artists,  painters  and  modellers  were  secured.  Things  went 
more  or  less  smoothly  for  a  while,  but  so  many  complaints 
were  made  of  attempted  frauds  that  Louis  XV.,  becoming 
weary,  in  1760  bought  up  the  establishment  and  "became 
"sole  proprietor,  continuing  M.  Boileau  as  director."  The 
King  and  Madame  de  Pompadour  used  to  visit  the  factory 
every  week,  and  the  latter,  who  was  a  skilled  artist  herself, 

^his   was   1745.     In   1753   the  factory   was  transferred   from   Vin- 
oennes  to  Sevres. 


SEVRES    PORCELAIN.  131 

often  colored  some  of  the  tasteful  specimens  of  manu- 
facture, and  even  molded  some  of  the  cups  and  vases  with 
her  own  fingers.  One  table  presented  by  the  King  to  the 
Comtesse  du  Nord  cost  the  large  sum  of  seventy-five  thou- 
sand livres.  The  story  is  told  that  at  Chateau  de  Belle  Vue 
the  Marquise  de  Pompadour  during  one  winter  received  the 
King  in  a  room  opening  into  a  conservatory  filled  with 
exquisite  blooms  which  shed  around  delicious  perfumes. 
The  King  desired  to  pluck  one  lovely  flower,  but  found  that 
the  bloom  and  its  fellows  were  made  of  porcelain,  watered 
with  sweet-smelling  essences.  Louis  in  this  instance  was 
deceived,  as  in  another  way  was  the  artist  who  tried  to 
brush  from  an  oil  painting  a  fly  painted  by  Quentin 
Matsys.  The  King,  in  his  delight,  ordered  from  the  fac- 
tory flowers  for  Belle  Vue  and  his  own  palaces,  to  the 
value  of  eight  hundred  thousand  livres,  if  the  continuation 
of  the  story  may  be  believed. 

In  1778  Catherine  II.  of  Russia  ordered  and  paid  for  a 
service  of  seven  hundred  and  forty-four  pieces,  costing 
three  hundred  and  twenty-eight  thousand,  one  hundred 
and  eighty-eight  livres,  or  nearly  $200,000.  This  service 
had  a  curious  history.  At  a  fire  in  one  of  the  palaces 
one  hundred  and  sixty  of  the  pieces  were  stolen,  and 
afterwards  sold  in  England.  The  Emperor  Nicholas  heard 
of  the  pieces  and  repurchased  them,  restoring  them  to 
Russia  about  the  year  1852.  The  old  buildings  at  Sevres 
were  erected  in  1755,  when  the  works  were  transferred 
from  Vincennes  and  purchased  by  Louis  XV.,  but  new 
buildings  have  been  added  and  the  old  much  improved. 
They  now  belong  to  the  State. 


132  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

ISText  to  taking  the  drive  from  Paris  to  Sevres,  and 
spending  a  couple  of  hours  in  examining  the  splendid  col- 
lection there  gathered  together,  the  most  enjoyable  thing 
is  to  have  such  a  volume  as  that  provided  by  M.  Gamier, 
over  which  to  sit  in  a  cosy  arm-chair  and  pore  at  one's 
leisure.  It  may  be  invidious,  where  all  the  plates  are 
so  good,  to  single  out  any  two  or  three  in  particular, 
but  if  a  choice  is  to  be  made  the  three  deserving  special 
notice  seem  to  be  the  frontispiece,  a  tray  with  the  mono- 
gram of  Madame  du  Barry,  painted  by  Asselin,  and 
plates  11  and  25,  depicting  two  exquisite  vases,  one  the 
well-known  Vaisseau  a  Mat,  or  masted  vessel,  executed  in 
1752,  and  reproduced  in  most  of  the  text-books  on  porce- 
lain, and  the  other  a  Vase  aux  Colombes,  both  in  the 
possession  of  Baron  Alphonse  de  Bothschild. 


Liturgical  Manuscripts. 


Liturgical  Manuscripts. 


IN  the  Free  Library  of  Philadelphia  are  preserved 
fourteen  Choir  Books  written  on  parchment  during 
the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries,  which  for- 
merly belonged  to  various  convents  of  religious  orders  in 
Portugal.  The  original  bindings  have  been  preserved,  and 
deserve  particular  attention.  They  have,  in  some  parts, 
been  subjected  to  necessary  repairs.  The  majority  are  thick 
boards,  covered  with  stamped  brown  calf  leather,  having 
the  bosses,  clasps  and  chiselled  corners  complete,  while  the 
metal  ornamentations  are  varied.  The  largest  volume 
measures  30  by  22,  and  the  smallest  20  by  14  inches.  They 
are  fine  specimens  of  Portuguese  caligraphy,  and  at  least 
two  of  the  earliest  of  them  were  gifts  of  King  John  III.  of 
Portugal  to  Portuguese  convents.  He  reigned  between 
the  years  1521  and  1557,  and  is  celebrated  in  history  for 
having  colonized  Brazil  and  being  the  King  under  whose 
auspices  Japan  was  discovered.  He  established  the 
Inquisition  in  Portugal. 

The  books  give  a  pleasant  insight  to  Portuguese  scrip- 
torial  art  of  that  date,  many  of  the  illuminated  borders  to 
the  great  folio  leaves  being  very  handsome.     The  initial 


136  HITHER    AND    THITHEE. 

letters  are  in  some  instances  miniatured  or  historiated,  and 
scattered  through  the  volumes  will  he  found  hundreds  of 
capital  letters  in  colors  and  in  gold.  Some  details  con- 
nected with  each  volume  are  hereafter  given,  attention 
being  especially  called  to  number  seven,  not  copied  by  the 
pen,  but  executed  by  means  of  stencil  letters.  It  has  been 
asserted,  and  probably  with  truth,  that  in  none  of  the 
Portuguese  cathedrals  will  be  found  a  collection  as  com- 
plete as  this,  of  the  liturgical  monuments  of  the  national 
worship.  As  might  be  expected,  bibliomaniacs  have  not 
hesitated  to  injure  some  of  the  books  by  cutting  out  por- 
tions of  the  decorations.  More  than  enough  remains,  how- 
ever, in  every  volume,  to  make  it  a  matter  of  congratulation 
that  so  fine  a  set  of  liturgical  volumes  has  been  secured 
for  a  public  library. 

In  every  cathedral  and  monastery  in  foreign  countries 
there  will  be  generally  found  a  large  lectern  in  the  center 
of  the  choir,  on  which  is  placed  a  book  similar  to  one  of 
these.  They  contain  portions  of  the  Mass  not  sung  by  the 
Priest  or  by  the  Great  Choir.  In  them  will  be  found,  there- 
fore, Introits,  Graduals,  Alleluias,  Offertories  and  other 
portions  of  the  Office,  which  are  usually  sung  by  four  or 
more  Cantors,  who,  vested  in  copes,  group  themselves 
around  the  lectern  and  sing  in  the  Gregorian  or  Plain 
Chant  those  portions  of  the  Mass  which  change  according 
to  the  season.  Some  of  the  books  are  mainly  for  use  on 
Ferial  or  ordinary  days,  to  which  there  is  no  special  Office 
or  music  attached.  In  other  volumes  the  Gregorian  or 
Plain  Chant  settings,  suitable  for  Great  Feasts  and  Fast 
Days,  are  found.     It  need  hardly  be  mentioned  that  the 


LITURGICAL    MANUSCRIPTS.  137 

music  is  mainly  written  on  the  old  four-line  staff,  with 
square,  diamond  and  tailed-square  Gregorian  notes. 

Number  I :  A  Sancturale  according  to  the  Order  of 
St.  Jerome.  From  the  colophon,  it  appears  that  this  book 
of  Divine  Offices  was  completed  in  the  month  of  June, 
1548,  while  Father  Blasius  D'Olivenga  was  rector  of  the 
College,  and  the  expenses  are  stated  to  have  been  borne  by 
King  John  III. 

The  volume  consists  of  one  hundred  and  eighty-nine 
folios,  of  which  six  (152,  15S,  159,  181,  184  and  185) 
are  lacking.  Many  of  the  pages  have  been  cut,  but  care- 
fully mended. 

On  page  1  is  a  large  border  of  flowers  and  arabesques 
in  gold  and  in  colors;  part,  however,  has  been  cut  away. 
In  the  center  of  the  bottom  of  the  border  are  the  arms  of 
some  Cardinal,  the  arms  themselves  having  been  effaced. 

The  initial  letter  V[nus]  on  folio  1  deserves  careful 
notice,  and  on  the  verso  of  folio  151  is  a  very  handsome 
historiated  initial  letter  S[ancti],  showing  St.  Jerome 
kneeling  before  a  crucifix. 

The  volume  is  written  in  a  large,  Gothic  hand,  in  red 
and  black,  and  has  the  Plain  Chant  notation  throughout.  It 
contains  a  thousand  initial  letters,  of  which  more  than 
nine  hundred  are  red,  some  blue  and  the  remainder  black. 

Father  Blasius  D'Olivenga,  was  Friar  of  the  celebrated 
Convent  of  Belem,  near  Lisbon.  This  magnificent  church 
was  founded  by  King  Emmanuel  in  honor  of  the  discovery 
of  the  route  to  India  by  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope  by  Vasco 
de  Gama.  Later  D'Olivenga  was  made  Provincial  of  the 
Order  of  Saint  Jerome  in  Portugal. 


138  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

The  binding  is  well  preserved. 

Number  II:  A  Dominicale  according  to  the  Order  of 
St.  Jerome. 

The  Dominicale  is  a  book  in  which  is  contained  the 
lections  and  other  matter  belonging  to  the  Office  for  Sun- 
days and  Dominical  Festivals.  At  the  end  of  the  volume 
it  is  stated  in  the  colophon  that  this  book  of  Divine  Offices 
was  completed  in  the  month  of  June,  1548  (like  Number 
I) ?  during  the  rectorship  of  Father  Blasius  D'Olivenca, 
the  terms  being  the  same  as  in  the  colophon  to  Number 
I ;  and  it  is  added  that  the  expenses  were  borne  by  King 
John  III.  of  Portugal. 

This  volume  consists  of  one  hundred  and  sixty-three 
folios.  The  principal  decoration  can  be  found  on  page  1, 
of  which  part  of  an  elaborate  border  is  still  preserved,  and 
there  is  a  large  initial  letter  E  [cce] . 

About  eleven  hundred  initial  letters  will  be  found  in  the 
volume,  in  red  or  in  blue,  of  the  same  artistic  character  as 
the  letters  in  Volume  I.  In  this  volume,  however,  no 
Plain  Chant  is  given.  It  will  be  noticed  that  a  delicate 
floriated  decoration  will  be  found  in  the  margins  to  accom- 
pany each  of  the  beautiful  initial  letters.  These  are  much 
varied.  Folios  4  and  5  of  the  original  on  parchment  are 
wanting,  and  in  their  stead  two  folios  of  paper  of  the  same 
period,  have  been  inserted  with  the  text  in  black,  but  with- 
out initial  letters. 

Number  III:  A  book  of  Offices,  opening  with  the 
special  matter  for  the  Vigil  of  the  Nativity.  Unfor- 
tunately, the  last  leaf  has  been  mutilated  and  the  lower 
half  cut  away  and  replaced  by  a  piece  of  paper  of  the 


LITUEGICAL    MANUSCRIPTS.  139 

period  iii  which  the  volume  was  apparently  written.  It 
will  be  noticed  on  some  of  the  earlier  folios,  2,  3,  4,  26, 
etc.,  that  to  adapt  the  volume  to  the  use  of  some  particular 
church,  in  which  the  responses  were  not  the  same  as  those 
written  out  by  the  scribe,  others  written  on  strips  have 
been  tipped  in  with  gum  and  placed  over  the  original 
writing.  There  are  really  one  hundred  and  ninety-three 
folios  in  the  volume,  although,  according  to  the  pagination, 
there  should  be  203,  but  through  an  error  the  scribe  has 
jumped  from  187  to  198.  The  writing  is  beautifully 
done,  and  is  of  the  same  style  as  Numbers  I  and  II.  Of 
the  initial  letters,  three  hundred  and  two  are  in  black  and 
one  hundred  and  sixty  in  red  or  in  blue. 

The  initial  letter  on  the  first  folio  R[ex]  is  miniatured, 
and  shows  the  Holy  Family  on  the  steps  of  a  porticoed 
building.  Saint  Mary  is  adoring  the  Infant  Christ  sur- 
rounded by  an  ox,  St.  Joseph,  the  ass,  etc. 

There  is  a  particularly  well  executed  large  initial  letter 
Z[elus]  on  the  verso  of  folio  58.  The  gold  and  blue  are 
fresh  and  attractive.  The  filigree  decorations  of  some  of 
the  initial  letters,  especially  those  depicting  flowers,  are 
elaborate  and  worthy  of  examination. 

Number  IV:  A  Ferial  Book  written  in  the  sixteenth 
century,  commencing  with  the  particular  matter  used  in 
the  Mass  sung  on  the  Saturday  before  Quadragesima. 
There  are  one  hundred  and  eighty-six  folios,  paginated 
1  to  44,  88  to  187  and  189  to  216  (after  which  some  pages 
are  apparently  wanting),  followed  by  fourteen  unnum- 
bered folios.  There  does  not  seem  to  be  any  omission,  and 
probably  the  pagination  is  at  fault.    There  certainly  seems 


140  HITHER   AND    THITHER. 

no  folio  missing  between  187  and  189,  and  if  there  were 
any  between  folios  44  and  88,  they  must  have  been 
removed  or  omitted  at  the  time  when  the  volume  was 
bound.  The  three  principal  initial  letters  are:  T[unc] 
on  folio  1,  A[lleluya]  folio  88,  and  S[acerdos]  folio  150. 
The  last  is,  by  far,  the  best  of  the  three. 

There  are  two  hundred  and  ninety-four  initial  letters 
in  red  or  in  blue,  and  seventy-four  in  black.  One  of  the 
clasps  is  wanting. 

Number  V:  A  Ferial  Book  for  use  on  ordinary  days 
from  Easter  to  Pentecost.  It  rather  unusually  commences 
with  the  Plain  Song  for  the  Kyrie,  Gloria  in  Excelsis, 
Sanctus,  Benedictus  and  Agnus  Dei,  followed  by  the 
Asperges.  The  pagination  is  on  the  reverse  of  each  folio. 
The  volume  contains  two  hundred  and  twenty-nine  folios, 
and  the  writing  belongs  to  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century. 

There  are  four  hundred  and  forty-four  initial  letters, 
with  six  large  letters  in  gold  and  in  colors.  These  are 
curious,  and  have  arabesque  ornaments.  They  are  on  the 
following  folios:  A[d]  on  folio  2,  P[uer]  on  folio  22, 
H(i)[esu]  on  folio  155,  V[iri]  on  folio  176,  S[piritus] 
on  folio  181,  and  B[enedicta]  on  folio  189.  The  execu- 
tion of  these  is  more  curious  than  beautiful. 

The  brass  corner  bindings  are  very  small. 

Number  VI:  A  Graduale,  in  a  very  good  state  of 
preservation.  The  brass  ornaments  are  well  preserved. 
Strictly,  a  Graduale  is  the  anthem  or  hymn  sung  after  the 
Epistle  and  before  the  Gospel.  At  an  early  time  it  ceased 
to  be  sung  at  the  altar,  and  was  sung  at  the  lectors'  ambo. 

At  the  end  of  the  volume  is  given  an  index,  arranged  in 


LITURGICAL    MANUSCRIPTS.  141 

alphabetical  order,  showing  where  can  be  found  the 
Introits,  Graduals,  Alleluias,  Offertories  and  Communions 
contained  in  the  volume.  After  these,  on  folio  188,  is 
given  the  Asperges,  with  notation.  The  volume  contains 
one  hundred  and  ninety-one  folios,  of  which  folio  123  has 
been  cut  out,  as  also  has  the  lower  half  of  folio  185. 

The  writing  may  be  compared  with  Number  IV,  being 
of  about  the  same  date. 

There  are  two  hundred  and  seventy-six  initial  letters  in 
colors,  with  two  large  ones  worthy  of  careful  examination. 
M[  ihi]  on  folio  1,  showing  St.  Andrew  with  his  cross,  and 
G[audeam]  on  folio  86. 

Number  VII:  Measures  29  by  22  inches,  and  is  the 
"Common  of  the  Apostles  and  Evangelists  except  at  Easter- 
"tide" ;  that  is  to  say,  the  service  book  used  on  Feasts  of 
Apostles  and  Evangelists  for  which  no  special  responses 
were  provided. 

It  is  stated  that  it  was  executed  by  Brother  Emmanuel, 
of  the  Most  Holy  Trinity,  a  monk  of  that  monastery,  in 
the  year  1787.  It  is  an  unusually  large  book,  and  has 
apparently  been  executed  by  stencils. 

There  are  ninety-nine  folios  with  initials  in  red,  and  a 
very  interesting  series  of  three  vignettes  executed  by  the 
pen  on  folios  1,  12  and  48.  The  vignette  on  folio  1  has 
never  been  completed,  as  the  title  of  the  book  has  not  been 
inserted  in  the  large  space  in  the  center  apparently  reserved 
for  it.  At  the  foot  are  pictures  of  some  of  the  monks 
engaged  at  work,  with  two  boxes  of  stencil  plates  appro- 
priated to  the  upper  and  lower  cases  respectively.  The 
second  vignette  is  at  the  foot  of  folio  12,  and  is  apparently 


142  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

an  allegorical  sketch  of  Adam  and  Eve  and  the  apple,  after 
the  Fall.  In  the  center  is  a  head,  probably  of  one  of  the 
cherubim,  from  whose  month  pours  forth  a  stream  of  fire. 
The  sketch  is  evidently  not  completed.  The  third  vignette 
is  on  page  48.     It  is  very  conventional. 

Number  VIII :  A  manuscript  of  the  seventeenth 
century.  On  the  last  folio  has  been  gummed  in  a  list  of 
the  particular  festivals  between  the  Vigil  of  Saint 
Andrew  and  the  Feast  of  Saint  Michael,  for  which  special 
responses  have  been  provided  and  noted  in  this  volume. 

The  volume  consists  of  eighty-eight  folios,  and  the  execu- 
tion of  the  scribe  is  not  remarkable. 

Number  IX :  This  volume  is  of  great  size,  and  is  a 
beautiful  specimen  of  the  work  of  the  scribe,  but,  unfor- 
tunately, the  first  and  last  folios  are  wanting.  It  is  a  book 
of  the  sixteenth  century,  has  one  hundred  and  forty  folios, 
and  two  hundred  and  sixty-five  initial  letters  in  red  or 
blue.     The  letters  are  variously  patterned. 

Number  X :  This  volume  is  apparently  incomplete. 
Looking  at  folio  1,  it  seems  clear  that  it  was  intended  to 
put  into  this  volume  more  than  it  now  has,  or  else  it  formed 
a  part  of  a  larger  work,  of  which  the  folios  here  bound 
together,  formed  a  part. 

The  writing  is  of  the  seventeenth  century. 

It  has  three  large  initial  letters  in  red  and  blue,  with 
Arabic  ornamentations,  besides  ninety-five  initial  letters 
in  colors  and  two  hundred  and  fifty  in  black.  The  initial 
letters  are:  C[reator]  folio  5  verso,  A[ve]  folio  88,  and 
E[xultet]  folio  101.    Both  clasps  are  missing. 

Number  XI:  A  Psalterium  of  the  sixteenth  century 
without  the  music. 


LITURGICAL    MANUSCRIPTS.  143 

It  consists  of  one  hundred  and  eighty-nine  folios,  of 
which  folio  160  has  been  cut  out,  and  apparently  one  or 
more  folios  are  wanting  at  the  end. 

The  writing  is  beautiful,  and  there  are  seven  large  letters 
in  many  colors,  with  rich  painted  borders. 

The  large  letters  are :  B[eatus]  on  folio  3,  T)[ominus] 
on  folio  38  verso,  of  which  the  border  is  very  choice; 
D[ixi]  on  folio  61  verso,  D[ixit]  on  folio  80  verso, 
S[alvum]  on  folio  99,  E[xultate]  on  folio  126,  and 
C[antate]  on  folio  116.  The  rich  borders  add  very  much 
to  the  beauty  of  this  book. 

Number  XII:  A  volume  of  the  seventeenth  century, 
which  commences  with  the  Asperges.  It  contains  one  hun- 
dred and  eight  folios,  and  has  one  hundred  and  five  letters, 
colored  and  decorated  with  arabesque  ornaments. 

At  folio  87  is  a  comparatively  modern  but  elaborate 
title-page,  which  commences  the  special  Office  for  the  Feast 
of  Saint  Anthony. 

The  decoration  is  not  very  artistic,  but  it  is  elaborate, 
and  before  some  of  the  colors  became  rubbed  it.  may  have 
been  far  more  attractive  than  it  now  is. 

The  initial  letters  are  wanting  in  the  usual  ecclesiastical 
characteristics.  For  instance,  the  "P"  on  folio  90,  and 
the  two  at  the  top  of  the  verso-  of  folio  93  and  at  the  top 
of  folio  91,  where  the  artist  apparently  gives  us  a  dryad 
and  a  mermaid. 

Two  folios  at  the  end  have  apparently  been  cut  out,  and 
one  of  the  clasps  is  missing. 

Number  XIII :  Consists  of  ninety-nine  folios,  of  which 
folio  57  is  wanting  in  the  enumeration,  but  the  catch  word 


144  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

on  folio  56  would  seem  to  show  that  there  is  nothing  miss- 
ing. There  seem  to  be  one  or  two  folios  wanting  at  the 
end. 

There  are  many  initial  letters  in  black,  blue  and  red, 
which  are  elaborately  ornamented  with  foliations  at  the 
side.  On  folio  70  verso,  is  a  capital  P[laceboj,  the 
center  of  the  letter  containing  a  skull  bearing  upon  it  a 
large  cross.  The  bones  of  the  skull  are  not  anatomically 
well  done.     One  of  the  clasps  is  missing. 

Number  XIV:  A  good  specimen  of  the  workmanship 
of  the  seventeenth  century.  There  are  a  large  number  of 
initial  letters  in  black,  red  and  blue,  and  a  large  initial 
letter  on  folio  34,  It  [ex].  It  contains  one  hundred  and 
seventeen  folios. 


Six  "Greatest"  Books. 


10 


Six  "Greatest"  Books.1 


i. 

Of  The   Imitation   of  Christ. 


I  WAS  asked  early  in  1904  to  say  a  few  words  in  six 
numbers  of  a  Philadelphia  magazine2  on  "Six 
"Greatest  Books."  I  rashly  said,  "Certainly  I  will 
"do  so," — the  more  rashly  as  I  did  not  decide  till  after  the 
promise  was  made  on  what  books  I  would  write.  The 
task  seemed  easy,  and  taking  a  pencil  and  paper,  I 
first  put  down  the  Bible,  but  concluded  that  ought  to  be 
omitted  as  standing  in  a  pre-eminent  class — one  by  itself. 
Then  I  came  to  a  stop. 

What  is  meant  by  "greatest  book  ?"  Is  it  a  book  that 
has  given  the  author  the  greatest  labor  to  compose  ?  Is  it  a 
book  that  has  done  the  most  good  ?  Is  it  a  book  of  which 
more  copies  have  been  sold  and  printed  than  others?  In 
what  does  greatness  consist  as  connected  with  a  book  ? 

1  "Six  Great  Books"  was  the  title  intended,  but  the  printer  willed 

otherwise. 

2  "The  Optimist." 


148  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

If  we  give  a  little  consideration  to  the  book  known  as 
"Of  the  Imitation  of  Christ,"  we  shall  find  that  several  of 
the  questions  propounded  above,  if  applied  to  it  would  be 
answered  in  the  affirmative. 

It  undoubtedly  has  achieved  an  immense  amount  of 
spiritual  good,  and  is  one  of  the  six  books  of  which  the 
greatest  number  of  copies  have  been  printed.  It  is  a 
remarkable  book,  and  the  number  of  its  readers  is  larger  in 
the  present  day  and  generation,  than  ever  before. 

Is  it  not  remarkable  that  the  authorship  of  some  of  the 
bestrknown  books  is  a  matter  of  controversy  ?  In  the 
present  case  the  dispute  is  more  apparent  than  real.  I 
have,  in  a  separate  paper1  in  this  volume,  said  all  that  is 
necessary  as  to  the  authorship  of  this  immortal  book. 
Much  I  wrote  for  this  series  of  articles  may  be  consequently 
omitted. 

It  has  been  properly  pointed  out  that  the  primary  cause 
of  the  controversy  about  the  authorship  lies  in  the  un- 
assuming greatness  of  the  writer.  Like  Shakespeare, 
A'Kempis  did  not  obtrude  himself,  but,  as  John  Malone 
says,  "the  plain  tale  of  contemporary  testimony  and  the 
"undoubted  autographs  of  A'Kempis  himself  put  the 
"claims  of  all  but  A'Kempis  himself  outside  the  bars  of 
"evidence." 

A'Kempis  wrote  several  smaller  works,  but  his  fame 
rests  almost  entirely  on  "The  Imitation." 

The  book  has  been  in  men's  hands  now  for  five  hundred 
years ;  and  one  collector  alone  had  over  a  thousand  differ- 
ent editions  in  his  library. 
1  Of  the  Imitation  of  Christ. 


OF    THE    IMITATION    OF    CHRIST.  149 

In  defense  of  his  anonymity,  the  writer  himself  said  he 
"lived  to  be  unknown,"  and  advised  men  "to  search  not 
"who  spoke  this  or  that,  but  to  attend  to  what  was  spoken." 
To  the  remarkable  German  monk  who  gave  us  this  book  of 
almost  priceless  value  an  enormous  debt  is  owing.  Hardly 
a  home  containing  books  does  not  include  a  copy  of  "The 
"Imitation."  It  has  been  the  comfort  of  rich  and  poor,  the 
educated  and  the  little  trained.  It  may  fairly  stand  as  one 
of  the  foremost  books  of  the  world. 

Lastly,  it  may  be  remarked  that  it  is  strange  that,  not 
only  should  the  authorship  of  this  book  be  in  dispute ;  but 
that  also  the  authorship  of  "The  Whole  Duty  of  Man"1 
remains  undiscovered,  yet  no  two  religious  books  have  been 
more  universally  received  and  circulated.  Millions  of 
these  books  have  been  circulated  in  the  Christian  world. 

1  Published  1659.  Variously  attributed  to  Archbishop  Saneroft, 
to  William  Chappel,  and  to  others. 


Six  "Greatest"  Books. 


II. 

The  Pilgrim's  Progress. 


A  SECOND  of  the  "greatest"  six  books,  of  which  the 
largest  number  of  copies  have  been  printed  is  John 
Bunyan's  "The  Pilgrim's  Progress."  It  was 
published  in  1678,  when  Bunyan  was  about  fifty  years  of 
age.  He  is  not  a  man  of  one  book,  but  his  immortal  alle- 
gory is  undoubtedly  so  far  superior  to  any  of  his  other 
writings,  that  he  is  generally  known  and  thought  of  only  as 
the  author  of  "The  Pilgrim's  Progress." 

Lord  Macaulay  has  written  the  most  unqualified  of  the 
many  panegyrics  about  the  book.  He  could  find  nothing 
but  praise  for  it,  and  dismissed  the  objection  that  the  alle- 
gory does  not  hang  together  in  details,  and  that  some  of  the 
particulars  are  incongruous,  with  the  remark  "It  is  not 
"easy  to  make  a  simile  go  on  all-fours."1 

Eichard  Dowling,  in  his  "Indolent  Essays,"  protests 
against  the  prescriptive  approval  of  Bunyan,  as  being  one- 
sided, and  vigorously  attacks  the  language  used  by  him. 
It  is  difficult  to  agree  with  this  comment.  Bunyan  had 
vigor,  a  story-telling  gift  and  an  apt  and  clever  use  of  the 

1  Critical  and  Miscellaneous  Essays :  "Southey's  edition  of  The  Pil- 
"grim'e  Progress." 


THE    PILGRIM'S    PROGRESS.  151 

homely  language  of  his  own  class  in  his  own  day.  Bun- 
van's  conceits  were  drawn  from  his  own  imagination; 
pondered  over  at  length  in  the  dullness  of  twelve  years' 
imprisonment;  and  fostered  only  by  a  very  limited  educa- 
tion and  recourse  during  twelve  years  to  two  books  only. 
But  how  great  the  result  was,  is  shown  by  the  popularity  of 
the  work. 

Lord  Macaulay  said  that  if  there  had  been  no  ''The  Pil- 
"grim's  Progress"  the  author's  ''Holy  War''  would  have 
been  the  first  of  religious  allegories.1  This  seems  altogether 
beyond  belief.  Canon  Venables  has  said  that  the  narrative 
of  "The  Holy  War"  "moves  in  a  more  shadowy  region,"2 
than  "The  Pilgrim's  Progress."  Mr.  Froude  says  "The 
"Holy  War  would  have  entitled  Bunyan  to  a  place 
"among  the  masters  of  English  literature.  It  would  never 
"have  made  his  name  a  household  word  in  every  English 
"speaking  family  on  the  globe."3  The  editions  of  "The 
"Pilgrim's  Progress"  in  England  fill  many  pages  of  the 
Catalogue  of  the  British  Museum. 

Bunyan's  education  was  of  the  slightest  character,  and 
his  early  life  discreditable.  His  language  was  so  atrocious 
that  he  was  rebuked  by  a  woman  who  heard  him,  she  pro- 
testing that  he  swore  and  cursed  at  so  fearful  a  rate  that 
she  was  made  to  tremble  to  hear  him,  although  she  herself 
wTas  notorious  for  what  we  to-day  call  "fishwives'  Billings- 
"gate."  Bunyan  owed  very  much  indeed  of  the  changed  life 
that  came  over  him  to  the  influence  of  his  wife,  whom  he 
married  when  he  was  only  nineteen.    He  lived  in  troublous 

1  Critical  and  Miscellaneous  Essays :  "John  Bunyan." 

2  Life  of  John  Bunyan.     By  Edmund  Venables.     (Great  Writers.) 
•Bunyan.    By  James  Anthony  Froude.     (English  Men  of  Letters.) 


152  HITHER    AND    THITHEE. 

religious  times,  it  being  a  period  when  it  was  unlawful  to 
preach  in  conventicles  or  at  unlicensed  meetings. 

The  success  of  "The  Pilgrim's  Progress"  was  instanta- 
neous, two  editions  being  published  in  1678.  It  reached  its 
tenth  edition  by  the  year  1685,  has  been  translated 
into  over  seventy-six  different  languages,  and  has  proved 
itself  the  greatest  and  most  popular  allegory  ever  written. 
Those  written  in  later  times  by  Adams,  Monro  and  others 
are  great,  but  just  as  Shakespeare  has  never  been  equaled 
by  any  other  English  poet,  so  Bunyan  has  never  been 
equaled  in  skill  and  abounding  interest  by  any  other  writer 
of  allegory.  A  very  charming  edition  was  published  some 
six  years  ago,  with  illustrations  by  the  three  brothers, 
Louis,  Frederick  and  George  Rhead;  and  the  "Temple 
"Classics"  edition  is  well  worth  owning.  It  is  not  certain 
how  much  was  written  during  his  imprisonment  and  how 
much  after  his  release.  Some  maintain  that  the  actual 
writing  was  done  by  Bunyan  during  his  secona^imprison- 
ment,  which  lasted  less  than  a  year.  The  first  edition 
came  from  the  press  of  Nathaniel  Ponder,  a  London  pub- 
lisher, and  the  publication  proved  such  a  financial  success 
that  the  printer  was  afterwards  known  as  "Bunyan 
"Ponder." 

The  Bunyan  literature  is  very  voluminous.  The  col- 
lection of  the  earlier  editions  of  the  allegory  in  the  Lenox 
Library  at  New  York  is  fairly  complete.  It  has  all  but 
four,  namely,  the  first,  seventh,  eleventh  and  seventeenth 
of  the  first  thirty-four  editions.  The  fifth  was  apparently 
the  first  to  be  illustrated,  and  the  copper  cuts  prepared  for 
the  fifth  edition  were  sold  either  with  or  without  the 


THE    PILGRIM'S    PROGRESS.  153 

text  That  the  popularity  of  the  work  was  enormous, 
is  practically  proved  by  the  fact  that  it  was  dramatized, 
though,  as  may  be  easily  understood,  it  was  not  a  success 
upon  the  stage. 

The  lives  of  Bunyan  are  very  numerous,  and  among  the 
best  writers  upon  him  and  his  works  are  included  Southey, 
Doctor  J.  Brown,  OfTor,  Lord  Macaulay,  J.  A.  Froude 
and  Copner. 

Whilst  Shakespeare  can  boast  of  having  had  his  name 
spelled  in  sixty-four  different  ways,  John  Bunyan  has 
proved  a  fairly  successful  rival,  as  we  find  his  name 
spelled  with  thirty-four  variations,  from  Buignon  and 
Bunion  down  to  Bunyan. 

The  copy  of  Fox's  "Book  of  Martyrs"  which  Bunyan 
spelled  out  in  prison  has  been  purchased  by  subscription 
and  placed  for  preservation  in  the  Bedfordshire  General 
Library.  It  is  enriched  with  annotations  in  rhyme, 
written  by  the  prisoner,  which  are  about  as  poetical  as  the 
verses  which  usually  precede  "The  Pilgrim's  Pro- 
"gress."  One  is  a  comment  upon  the  account  of  Bishop 
Gardiner's  death,  as  described  in  Fox,  and  it  reads  as  fol- 
lows: 

"The  blood,  the  blood  that  he  did  shed 
"Is  falling  on  his  one  [own]  head  ; 
"And  dreadful  it  is  for  to  see 
"The  beginning  of  his  misere." 

Bunyan  did  not  lack  for  humor,  for  when  a  Quaker 
visited  him  in  jail  and  declared  that  he  had  searched  for 
him  through  half  the  prisons  in  England,  the  prisoner 
retorted  that  if  the  Lord  had  sent  him,  he  need  not  have 


154  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

taken  so  much  trouble  to  find  him  out,  for  the  Lord  knew 
that  he  had  been  a  prisoner  in  Bedford  Jail  for  twelve 
years. 

Although  Bun  van  wrote  fifty-nine  different  works,  it  is 
doubtful  if  any  are  familiarly  known,  except  his  "Grace 
"Abounding  to  the  Chief  of  Sinners,"  published  in  1666, 
"The  Holy  War,"  published  in  1682,  and  "The  Pil- 
"grim's  Progress."  As  a  book  of  extraordinary  imagi- 
nation, appealing  deeply  to  the  human  heart;  an  equal 
delight  to  old  and  young;  and  as  a  work  that  has  accom- 
plished immense  good,  it  is  certainly  permissible  to  include 
"The  Pilgrim's  Progress"  among  the  six  "greatest"  books. 


Six  " Greatest"  Books. 


in. 

The  Adventures  of  Robinson  Crusoe. 


U^TAHERE  scarce  exists,"  says  Sir  Walter  Scott,  "a 
J^  "work  so  popular  as  "Robinson  Crusoe."1    Dr. 

Johnson  thought  that  the  only  books  he  knew 
of,  that  he  wished  longer  than  the  authors  had  made  them, 
were  "Don  Quixote,"  ''The  Pilgrim's  Progress"  and  "Rob- 
inson Crusoe."2  In  fact,  it  was  commonly  reported 
that  when  this  last  work  was  first  published  every  old 
woman  did  her  best  "to  go  the  price  of  it,"  and  then 
bequeathed  it  as  her  best  legacy  with  its  companion  book, 
Bunyan's  "The  Pilgrim's  Progress."3 

The  book  has  exercised  a  greater  influence  on  those  who 
read  it,  than  it  is  possible  to  estimate.  In  one  of  the 
principal  British  reviews  it  is  designated  as  being  in- 
tensely original,  and  at  the  same  time,  very  commonplace. 
This  is  so  because  it  occupies  an  almost  unique  position  as 
the  most  popular  piece  of  fiction  ever  produced ;  and  whilst 

1  Biographical  Memoirs  of  Eminent  Novelists:  Defoe.     (In  his  Mis- 
cellaneous Prose  Works.) 

2  Piozzi  "Anecdotes." 

8  Life  and  strange  surprising  adventures  of  Mr.  D De  F . 

(1719.) 


156  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

some  persons  will  rank  "The  Pilgrim's  Progress"  above  it, 
it  must  not  be  overlooked  that  this  latter  work  depends  for 
its  universal  popularity  very  much  on  its  religious 
character. 

The  story  of  Robinson  Crusoe  breathes  on  every  page 
sound  and  practical  teaching  as  to  the  duties  of  children 
to  their  parents,  yet  it  is  never  didactic;  and  the  writer 
never  sermonizes.  The  great  point  made  by  Defoe  is — 
Turn  your  hand  to  what  is  next  to  be  done  with  prompti- 
tude, perseverance  and  a  resolution  to  make  the  best  of 
circumstances. 

Crusoe's  entire  course  of  action  during  his  residence  of 
twenty-eight  years  on  the  island  of  Tabago  is  a  determina- 
tion to  make  the  best  of  circumstances.  He  was  not  a 
skilled  laborer;  he  was  only  a  lad  when  he  ran  away  from 
home  and  had  no  particular  education.  But  as  his  life 
would  have  been  infinitely  less  comfortable  without  chairs, 
tables,  earthenware  vessels  to  hold  his  drink  and  pipes 
through  the  medium  of  which  he  desired  to  enjoy  the 
pleasures  of  tobacco,  he  set  to  work,  made  the  best  tools  he 
could ;  utilized  the  trees  around  him  and  proceeded  to  make 
himself  comfortable.  He  protected  himself  from  the  risks 
of  wild  beasts,  and  built  stockades  to  protect  himself  from 
the  incursions  of  possible  savages  from  neighboring 
islands.  He  secured  stocks  of  dried  grapes,  various  fruits, 
grew  a  little  wheat,  created  a  farm  and  enjoyed  the 
pleasures  of  conversation  with  his  parrot.  He  took  pos- 
session of  a  cave  which  protected  him  during  the  rainy 
seasons;  then  constructed  a  protected  residence,  which 
he  called  his  "palace ;"  built  himself  "a  country  residence," 


THE    ADVENTURES    OF    ROBINSON    CRUSOE.  157 

in  a  part  of  the  island  where  the  fruits  were  most  abun- 
dant; showed  his  want  of  knowledge  as  a  workman  by 
building  a  canoe  so  large  that  he  could  not  move  it  from  the 
place  on  which  it  was  built;  manufactured  his  celebrated 
umbrella;  cut  himself  convenient  caps;  provided  himself 
with  herbs  to  act  as  medicines ;  tried  to  keep  a  record  of 
the  passing  days  and  months ;  read  in  the  Bible,  a  copy 
of  which  he  had  found  in  the  bottom  of  one  of  the  chests 
saved  from  the  wreck;  and  generally  made  the  best  of 
things. 

The  book  has,  it  is  asserted,  a  better  claim  to  be  con- 
sidered an  English  classic  than  almost  any  other  book  in 
the  language. 

It  has  been  suggested  that  the  adventures  are  an 
allegory  or  dream  picture,  founded  on  the  author's  own 
life ;  that  the  desert  island,  the  hero's  ingenious  mechanical 
contrivances,  the  visits  and  fights  with  savages,  his 
attempts  to  circumnavigate  his  island  home,  his  love  of 
wandering,  as  shown  in  his  various  experiences  after  he 
readied  Tabago,  are  meant  to  shadow  forth  the  "experi- 
ence of  a  man  who  had  gone  over  every  vicissitude  of 
"life."  If  this  be  so,  Defoe's  difficulties  and  dangers, 
which  are  familiar  to  every  reader  of  literature,  suggested 
to  him  "not  a  Byronic  grimace,  but  the  most  cheerful  and 
"honest  of  smiles." 

The  "Adventures  of  Robinson  Crusoe,"  was  not  written 

until    seven    years    after    the    story    of    his    prototype, 

Alexander  Selkirk,  on  the  Island  of  Juan  Fernandez,  had 

been  published.1     The  notion  that  Selkirk  wrote  out  or 

1  Selkirk's   adventures   were   described   in   Capt.    Woodes   Rogers's 


158  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

dictated  his  adventures,  asking  Defoe  to  put  them  into 
good  English,  may  be  dismissed  without  much  considera- 
tion. The  story  of  Selkirk  was  common  property,  and, 
whilst  it  may  have  incited  the  brain  of  Defoe  to  write  a 
story  on  similar  lines  to  the  life  of  Selkirk,  there  is  no 
ground  for  thinking  that  Defoe  and  Selkirk  had  any  com- 
munication with  one  another  in  the  direction  of  narrator 
and  editor.  A  "catchpenny  pamphlet"  entitled  "Provi- 
dence Displayed,"  etc.,  and  purporting  to  be  written  by 
Selkirk  "by  his  own  hand,"  is  to  be  found  in  the  Harleian 
Mi  seel  1  any. 

The  improbabilities,  or  rather  impossibilities,  boldly 
narrated  in  "Robinson  Crusoe"  have  often  been  the  subject 
of  comment.  It  is  unusual,  to  say  the  least,  for  a  man  to 
leap  overboard  from  a  ship  or  boat  naked,  and  after  he 
has  swum  to  land  to  refresh  himself  with  biscuits  which 
he  had  put  into  his  pockets !  It  is  pointed  out  also 
that  Selkirk,  when  first  rescued,  as  a  result  of  his  four 
years  solitude  on  his  island,  mumbled  and  was  hardly  intel- 
ligible to  his  rescuers,  seeming  to  pronounce  each  word 
in  halves:  whereas  Robinson  Crusoe,  thanks  to  the  talka- 
tive propensities  of  Pretty  Poll,  kept  up  his  powers  of  con- 
versation, so  that  he  could  rejoice  in  the  friendship  of  his 
man  Friday;  and  after  twenty-eight  years  spent  on  the 
island,  seems  to  have  found  no  particular  trouble  in  talk- 
ing when  "rescued  by  Pyrates." 

"A  Cruising  Voyage  Round  the  World"  and  Capt.  Edward  Cooke's 
"A  Voyage  to  the  South  Sea  and  Round  the  World"  (Vol.  II,  intro.), 
both  published  in  1712.  There  was  also  a  catchpenny  pamphlet, 
"Providence  Displayed,"  written  by  his  own  hand.  (Diet,  of  Nat. 
Biog.) 


THE  ADVENTURES  OF  ROBINSON  CRUSOE.      159 

Rousseau1  considered  "Robinson  Crusoe"  to  rank  above 
Aristotle,  Buffon  and  Pliny,  and  Edgar  Allan  Poe2  said 
that  the  work  has  become  a  "household  thing"  in  nearly 
every  family  in  Christendom. 

Daniel  Foe  changed  his  name  to  Defoe  (or  De  Foe)  in 
1703,  and  published  no  less  than  two  hundred  and  fifty- 
four  works.  The  change  of  name  cannot  have  troubled 
him  much,  as  it  is  noticeable  that  he  used  no  less  than  one 
hundred  and  eighty-four  pseudonyms  in  the  course  of  his 
long  career  as  a  journalist  and  novelist.  His  "Robinson 
"Crusoe"  was  published  in  April,  1719,3  the  second  edition 
in  May,  followed  by  the  third  and  fourth  editions  in  June 
and  August  of  the  same  year.  By  1761  eight  more  editions 
had  been  issued,  and  those  published  subsequently  are  too 
numerous  to  mention.  A  very  charming  illustrated  edition 
was  published  in  1864,  with  a  portrait  and  one  hundred 
drawing's  by  J.  T.  Watson,  engraved  by  the  brothers  Dal- 
ziel.  The  work  has  been  translated  into  Dutch,  French, 
German,  Hungarian,  Italian,  Latin,  Persian,  Portuguese, 
Spanish,  Turkish,  Welsh  and  other  languages. 

It  has  been  asserted  that  Defoe  could  not  find  a 
publisher  willing  to  accept  the  book,  and  that  he  carried 
the  manuscript  through  the  round  of  the  publishing  houses 
of  the  day.  This  seems  a  very  improbable  story,  as  he 
was  fifty-eight  years  of  age  when  he  wrote  the  book  ami 
an    exceedingly    well-known     writer.       The      publisher, 

1  Emile. 

2  Review  of  "Life  .  .  .  Robinson  Crusoe."  in  Southern  Literary 
Messenger.  January,  1836. 

3  Originally  in  a  periodical  entitled  The  Original  London  Post,  or 
Heathcote's  Intelligencer  (Nos.  125-289,  inclusive.  1719). 


160  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

Taylor,  was  a  poor  man  when  he  undertook  to 
bring  out  this  work,  but  five  years  later  died,  leav- 
ing between  £40,000  and  £50,000.  A  more  probable 
story  is  that  Taylor  acquired  £1,000  by  undertaking  its 
publication.  Originally  the  two  volumes  comprised  the 
entire  work,  which  were  followed  several  years  later  by  a 
sequel  in  the  third  volume,  which  "nobody  ever  read\" 

The  present  monument  over  Defoe's  tomb  in  Bunhill 
Fields  Burial  Ground,  (the  original  "mean"  stone  having 
become  broken,)  was  as  the  inscription  states  erected  as 
"the  result  of  an  appeal  in  the  'Christian  World'  news- 
paper, to  the  boys  and  girls  of  England  for  funds  to 
"place  a  suitable  memorial  upon  the  grave  of  Daniel 
"Defoe."  Subscriptions  were  received  from  seventeen 
hundred  persons,  and  the  monument  was  erected  in  Sep- 
tember, 1870. 

Sir  Leslie  Stephen  states1  that  an  absurd  story,  pre- 
served by  T.  Warton,  is  given  in  Sir  Henry  Ellis'  "Letters 
"of  Eminent  Literary  Men"  to  the  effect  that  "Robinson 
"Crusoe"  was  written  by  Lord  Oxford  in  the  Tower.  It 
"needs  no  refutation." 

"Robinson  Crusoe"  has  been  indeed  an  instantly  and 
eternally  popular  work.  "To  no  work,"  it  has  been  aptly 
remarked,  "can  we  with  greater  justice  apply  Fielding's 
"boast  than  we  can  to  'Robinson  Crusoe,'  that  in  fiction 
"everything  is  true  but  the  names  and  dates,  whereas  in 
"history  only  the  names  and  dates  are  authentic." 
8  Diet,  of  Nat.  Biog. 


Six  " Greatest"  Books. 


IV. 

Don  Quixote. 


IN  many  ways,  it  may  be  claimed  that  the  publication  of 
"Don  Quixote"  effected  a  revolution  in  the  literature, 
and  possibly  in  the  manners,  of  Europe.  Be  thi3 
true,  whether  to  a  larger  or  to  a  smaller  extent,  the  publi- 
cation of  this  work  indisputably  forms  an  important  era 
in  the  history  of  mankind.  It  is  a  book  that  stands  for  a 
vast  deal  more  than  a  very  large  number  of  merely  "great" 
books.  If  it  is  to  be  included  among  the  half  a  dozen  books 
which  may  possibly  be  classed  as  "greatest,"  the  reason 
for  its  admission  into  the  list  ought  to  be  patent. 

It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  by  the  production  of  "Don 
"Quixote,"  the  death  of  the  old  romance  and  the  birth  of 
the  new  was  accomplished.  Fiction  from  that  time 
"divested  herself  of  her  gigantic  size,  tremendous  aspect 
"and  frantic  demeanor:  and  descending  to  the  level  of 
"common  life,  conversed  with  man  as  his  equal." 

The  book  had  an  immediate  success;  but  the  value  of 
that  success  must  be  judged  from  a  separate  standpoint. 
We  are  told  that  twelve  thousand  copies  of  the  first  part, 
printed  at  Madrid  in  1605,  were  circulated  before  the  sec- 

n 


162  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

ond  could  be  gotten  ready  for  the  press.  Having  regard  to 
the  fact  that  the  sale  took  place  just  three  hundred  years 
ago,  such  a  tremendous  operation  deserves  attention. 
Whence  was  its  merit  ?  What  was  the  cause  ?  We  are  told 
that  "the  very  children  handled  it,  boys  read  it,  men  under- 
stood, old  people  applauded  the  performance,  and  it  was 
"no  sooner  laid  down  by  one  than  another  took  it  up,  some 
"struggling  and  some  entreating  for  a  sight  of  it"  Of  the 
readers  of  that  day  it  is  said  "they  were  astonished  to  find 
"that  nature  and  good  sense  could  yield  a  more  exquisite 
"entertainment  than  they  had  derived  from  the  most 
"sublime  phrenzies  of  chivalry." 

The  erudite  George  Ticknor,  in  his  "History  of  Spanish 
"Literature"  tells  us  that  eight  editions  of  the  first  part 
were  printed  in  ten  years,  and  five  of  the  second  part  in  two 
years.  Further  that  he  considers  that  the  edition  pub- 
lished in  1781  by  the  Rev.  John  Bowie,  "who  gave 
"fourteen  years  of  unwearied  labor  to  prepare  it  for  the 
"press,"  is  the  true  and  safe  foundation  on  which  to  study 
"Don  Quixote,"  and  Bowie's  work  is  criticised  as  one  of 
"much  real  learning  and  at  the  same  time  of  little  preten- 
tion," as  is  nearly  always  the  case. 

"Don    Quixote"    has   been   translated    into    many   lan- 
guages, notably  Latin,   Italian,  Dutch,  Danish,  Russian, 
Polish,  Portuguese,   German  and  English.1       The    early 

1  In  Albert  J.  Calvert's  tercentenary  edition  of  the  "Life  of  Cer- 
"vantes,"  he  gives  a  bibliography  ending  with  1895,  excepting  for  one 
item  dated  1904.  Up  to  1895  there  were  208  Spanish  editions.  A 
separate  table,  however,  gives  650  as  the  total  number  of  editions, 
including  212  Spanish,  133  English,  158  French,  51  German,  20  Rus- 
sian, 20  Italian  and  16  Dutch.  The  seventeenth  century  saw  73,  the 
eighteenth  century  137,  and  the  nineteenth  century  (down  to  1895) 
440  editions. 


DON    QUIXOTE.  163 

dramatizations  of  "Don  Quixote"  were  very  unsuccessful, 
although  all  who  were  fortunate  enough  to  see  the  version 
produced  by  Sir  Henry  Irving,  felt  that  not  only  had  this 
great  actor  afforded  to  theatre-goers  a  treat  in  his  delinea- 
tion of  the  eccentric  hero;  but  that  he  had  laid  before  his 
audiences  the  result  of  a  keen  and  satisfactory  study  of  the 
book  dramatized.  His  performance  was  recently  criti- 
cised in  the  writer's  hearing  as  being  not  only  a  piece  of 
excellent  stage  work,  but  a  valuable  contribution  to  the 
appreciation  of  the  pre-eminent  work  accomplished  by 
Cervantes. 

It  is  interesting  to  notice,  in  an  article  in  Temple  Bar, 
how  Cervantes  was  noticed,  or  more  properly  unnoticed 
and  not  regarded  by  many  noted  victors  in  the  field  of  lit- 
erature. There  it  is  stated  that  Ruskin  mentions  him  in  a 
foot-note  only,  and  that  neither  Swift,  Southey,  Addison, 
Steele,  Pope,  Sterne,  Goldsmith  nor  Johnson  have  told  us 
anything  about  him;  but  that  Sir  Walter  Scott  confessed 
that  but  for  Cervantes  the  "Waverley  Novels"  would  never 
have  been  written.1 

Coleridge,  on  the  other  hand,  bears  admirable  testimony 
to  his  position  as  a  writer,  dubbing  him  "the  inventor  of 
"novels  for  the  Spaniards"  and  claiming  that  "in  his  'Per- 
"  'silis  and  Sigismunda'  the  English  may  find  the  germ  of 
"their  'Robinson  Crusoe.'  "2  Heine  says,  "Cervantes, 
"Shakespeare  and  Goethe  form  the  poetic-triumvirate,  who 
"in  the  three  forms  of  poetic  representation,  epic,  dramatic 
"and  lyric,  brought  forth  the  highest."3 

'Temple  Bar,  Vol.  XLVII   (1876)  :     "Heine  on  Cervantes  and  the 
"Don  Quixote." 

'  Fragments  and  notes,  mainly  from  the  "Lectures  of  1818." 
'  Einleitung  zur  Prachtausgabe  des  "Don  Quixote." 


164  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

In  the  novels  preceding  the  time  of  Cervantes,  old  epic 
stories,  the  feats  of  knights,  the  deeds  of  kings,  and  the 
prowess  of  members  of  chivalry  were  the  sole  topics ;  while 
the  thoughts,  lives  and  doings  of  the  masses  had  no  part  or 
parcel  in  the  stories.  Nor  is  it  difficult  to  understand  how 
writers  who  had  been  fed  and  trained  on  such  works  as  the 
''Shah  Nameh"  of  Firdausi,  the  "White  King,"  and 
"Theurdancks"  of  Treitzsaurwein,  dealing  with  the  deeds 
of  Maximilian  I. ;  and  who  considered  the  heroes  of 
the  cycles  of  Charlemagne  and  the  Holy  Grail  as  the 
beginning  and  end  of  all  that  romance  should  be,  naturally 
developed  their  romances  on  methods  false  to  life,  inas- 
much as  they  depicted  one  side  of  life  only. 

Cervantes  effected  one  of  the  greatest  changes  that  the 
pen  has  ever  achieved  when,  by  his  example,  he  made  a 
general  view  of  the  life  and  the  daily  doings  of  the  masses 
possible,  and  even  necessary,  in  works  of  fiction,  if  they 
were  to  be  enduring.  In  precisely  a  similar  way  the  great 
painters  of  peasant  life  have  supplemented  with  grace  and 
usefulness,  rather  than  replaced,  the  great  painters,  who  in 
their  day  and  generation  depicted  nothing  of  common  life, 
but  confined  their  immortal  talent  to  the  execution  of  mag- 
nificent Madonnas  and  Saints. 

Henry  D.  Sedgwick  says  that  "  'Don  Quixote'  is  the 
"first  modern  novel,  or,  in  other  words,  the  last  of  the 
"romances  of  chivalry  and  the  first  novel."  He  disputes 
the  idea  that  "Don  Quixote"  is  a  burlesque  on  romanti- 
cism and  knight-errantry;  for  even  if  Cervantes  began 
with  the  purpose  of  ridiculing  old  romances,  "his  genius 
"ran   away  with   the    charioteer,"    as   after   a   very   few 


DON    QUIXOTE.  165 

chapters  he  was  writing  not  a  satire  so  much  as  a  revela- 
tion or  picture  of  the  real  depths  of  life,  and  writing  it 
with  a  brain  and  fancy  both  keen  and  incisive. 

It  is  quite  possible  to  read  into  the  chapters  of  "Don 
"Quixote"  hidden  meanings  which  probably  never  had 
any  existence  in  the  mind  of  Cervantes,  just  as  intense 
meanings,  occult  learning,  and  superhuman  knowledge 
are  generally  infused  by  enthusiasts  into  the  lines  of 
Shakespeare,  of  which  he  was  probably  wholly  guiltless. 
Shakespeare  spoke  from  his  unapproached  throne  of 
greatness  as  a  writer,  and  he  spoke  from  a  full  heart ;  but 
probably  without  one-thousandth  part  of  the  deep,  subtle 
and  hardly-to-be-discovered  meanings  which  writers 
to-day  put  upon  his  words. 

Don  Quixote  is  a  great  teacher.  His  whimsicalities 
afford  amusement;  his  learning  is  instructive;  and  those 
who  read  Cervantes'  book  with  attention  will  see  how  great 
it  is,  and  why  it  deserves  to  be  included  amongst  those  that 
have  effected  the  greatest  changes  in  literature.  Such 
readers  will  become  as  much  improved  through  their  com- 
panionship with  the  eccentric  knight,  as  Sancho  Panza  wa9 
improved  and  changed,  from  an  almost  simpleton  at  the 
beginning  of  the  book  to  the  worthy  and  excellent  fellow 
he  became  after  remaining  long  a  faithful  follower  of  his 
optimistic  and  delightful  guide.  Truly  Don  Quixote  was 
the  inspirer  of  much  that  is  good  and  wise. 


Six  " Greatest"  Books. 


Utopia. 


APIOXEER  book  is  entitled  to  earnest  consideration 
when  considering  which  works  are  entitled  to  be 
called  great  books.  Sir  Thomas  More's  "Utopia" 
has  been  aptly  described  as  the  "first  original  story  by  a 
"known  English  author."  Flore's  work  has  at  least 
received  the  flattering  attention  of  being  imitated  by  many 
great  writers.  Among  the  most  notable  imitations  are 
Lord  Bacon's  "Xew  Atlantis,"  Harrington's  "Oceana," 
Lord  Lytton's  "Coming  Race"  and  Morris'  "Erewhon." 
Probably  much  additional  force  was  lent  to  Hobbes' 
"Leviathan"  and  Locke's  "Civil  Government,"  from  the 
virile  force  of  More's  "Utopia." 

More's  work  is  undoubtedly  very  great,  whether  it  be 
regarded  as  almost  a  prophecy  of  many  changes  that  have 
come  over  manners  and  activities  in  the  human  race  since 
his  book  was  published,  or  whether  it  be  looked  upon  as  a 
work  of  so  important  a  character,  that  the  thoughts  enun- 
ciated in  it  have  gradually  led  to  the  acceptance  of  the 
principles  for  which  he  contended. 

He  wrote  at  a  time  of  great  political  tumult  and  great 


UTOPIA.  167 

as  was  his  principal  literary  product,  still  greater  in 
interest  is  his  remarkable  life  and  career.  In  his 
"Utopia"  he  set  forth  a  system  of  religious  disorganiza- 
tion, depicting  it  all  the  while  as  a  model  organization. 
He  set  forth  a  system  of  multiplication  of  sects,  each  in 
private  "practicing  its  own  special  cult,  but  all  uniting  in 
"one  national  worship."  To  a  large  extent  he  was  a 
theorist  and  not  practical;  but  was  ready  to  lay  down  his 
life  rather  than  yield  a  point  to  which  his  conscience  for- 
bade him  to  assent.  King  Henry  VIII.  determined  he 
would  have  his  concurrence  on  the  divorce  question  or  his 
life.  He  could  not  obtain  his  approval,  therefore,  under 
one  fiction  and  another,  he  hounded  Sir  Thomas  More  to 
prison,  and  finally  to  the  scaffold. 

"Utopia"  is  a  very  advanced  work,  and  it  is  strange  to 
find  a  book  written  nearly  four  hundred  years  ago  urging 
complaints  against  the  unnecessary  severity  of  the  criminal 
law,  and  making  scathing  comments  on  the  wretched  con- 
trast exhibited  between  the  luxury  and  over-indulgence  of 
the  selfish  rich  and  the  wretched  condition  of  the  patient 
laboring  class.  His  opinions  are  just  such  as  we  find  in 
every  magazine  and  paper  of  to-day,  when  he  deplores  the 
"conspiracy  of  rich  men  procuring  their  own  commodi- 
ties under  the  name  of  a  Commonwealth,"  and  states  that 
perfect  wealth  will  never  be  found  among  men  until  the 
accumulation  of  money  by  means  of  trusts  shall  be  "exiled 
"and  banished."  It  is  also  strange  to  read  his  pleas  for 
reforms,  many  of  which  have  since  been  tried  or  effected, 
such  as  the  substitution  of  penal  servitude  for  capital  pun- 
ishment, improved  methods  in  the  education  of  the  general 


168  HITHER   AND    THITHER. 

masses,  a  six-hour  labor  day,  and  the  modification  of  agrar- 
ian conditions.  A  book  that  has  induced  and  brought 
about  great  changes  in  the  government  of  countries,  that 
has  been  the  direct  cause  of  reforms  on  a  great  scale ;  and 
that  has  been  the  original  seed  from  which  has  grown  a 
perfect  orchard  of  similar  works,  is  fairly  entitled  to  a 
place  amongst  the  great  books  of  the  world. 

More  is  another  instance  of  persons  who  have  made  great 
way  in  life  with  a  comparatively  slender  education.  He 
was  to  a  large  extent,  a  self-trained  man.  He  was  born  in 
1478,  educated  first  at  a  free  school,  and  later  in  the  family 
of  Cardinal  Morton,  but  left  college  without  taking  a 
degree.  He  had  two  lifelong  friendships  that  he  valued 
very  much,  Erasmus,  whom  he  met  in  1498,  and  De^n  I 
Colet,  with  whom  he  was  very  intimate  from  1504  to  1519. 
At  one  time  he  thought  of  becoming  a  Carthusian,  and  he|  | 
lived  under  the  rule  for  four  years.  He  tired  of  thejfj| 
thought  and  of  the  practices  of  the  rule  and  chose  a  wifeN^ 
The  peculiar  humor  of  the  man  is  clearly  indicated  in  his 
method  of  selecting  a  bride.  He  made  the  acquaintance 
of  a  gentleman  who  had  three  accomplished  and  agreeable 
daughters.  His  inclination  led  him  to  the  second,  but  he 
thought  "it  would  be  both  great  grief  and  some  blame  also," 
to  the  eldest  if  she  was  left  unmarried,  and  so  he  chose 
the  latter.  It  is  curious  that  he  had  the  courage  to  marry 
at  all,  as  he  himself  had  compared  the  danger  of  choosing  a 
wife  to  that  of  putting  a  hand  into  a  bag  full  of  snakes 
with  only  one  eel,  where,  he  said,  "one  may  indeed  chance 
"to  light  on  the  eel,  but  it  is  a  hundred  to  one  he  will  be 
"stung  by  a  snake."     Whether  he  found  a  bite  from  a 


UTOPIA.  169 

snake  or  not,  he  seemed  willing  to  make  a  second  venture  in 
the  marital  market,  for  we  are  told  that,  his  first  wife 
dying,  he  obtained  a  dispensation  to  marry  again  within  a 
month  of  the  lady's  death  and  "without  any  banns- 
"asking."1 

Henry  Craik,  in  his  "English  Prose,"  devotes  consider- 
able space  to  Sir  Thomas  More's  "Utopia ;"  and  quotes 
with  special  approval  a  long  passage  on  "Pasturage 
"Destroying  Husbandry,"  and  criticises  the  work  gener- 
ally with  the  remark  "that  the  book  itself  is  full  of  the 
"quiet  fun  in  which  More  has  no  superior." 

Undoubtedly  few  men  would  have  had  the  wit  to 
remark  to  the  Lieutenant  of  the  Tower,  who  apologized 
for  not  being  able  to  entertain  him  as  he  would  wish: 
"Mr.  Lieutenant  I  verily  believe,  as  you  may,  soe  are  you 
"my  good  frend  in  deed,  and  would  (as  you  say),  with 
"your  best  cheere  entertaine  me,  for  the  which  I  most 
"hardly  thank  you.  And  assure  your  selfe  (Mr.  Lieuten- 
ant) I  doe  not  mislyke  my  cheere,  but  whensoever  I  soe 
"doe,  then  thrust  me  out  of  your  doores."  ISTor  would 
many  have  shown  so  curiously  all  absence  of  fear  of  death. 
"When  mounting  the  scaffold,  observing  it  to  be  a  weak 
structure,  he  remarked  to  the  Lieutenant:  "I  pray  you, 
"I  pray  you  Mr.  Lievetenaunt  see  mee  safe  upp,  and 
"for  my  cominge  downe  lett  mee  shift  for  my  selfe." 

More  seems  to  have  been  "an  intelligent,  peace-loving 
"Conservative,  sprung  from  the  people,  who  desired  the 

1  This  story  quoted  by  the  Diet,  of  Nat.  Biog.  appeared  in  the 
"English  Historical  Review"  Vol.  VII— 712-15 — 1892).  but  Lumley 
in  his  edition  of  Roper's  "Life  of  More"  and  More's  "Utopia,"  gives 
the  date  of  the  death  of  More's  first  wife  as  1511-1512,  and  the  date 
of  the  second  marriage  as  1515. 


170  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

"welfare  of  all  classes,  but  never  contemplated  achieving 
"reform  in  any  department  of  State  or  Church  by  revolu- 
tion." 

Much  of  the  weight  of  his  arguments  in  "Utopia"  may 
be  attributed  to  the  fact  that  he  was  very  earnest  in  looking 
forward  to  a  reformation  in  church  matters  from  within, 
and  had  no  sympathy  with  the  attempt  of  Martin  Luther 
to  effect  a  reform  from  without.  Sir  Thomas  More  was 
successively  Treasurer  of  the  Exchequer,  Speaker  of  the 
House  of  Commons,  Chancellor  of  the  Duchy  of  Lancaster 
and  Lord  Chancellor,  being  the  first  layman  to  hold  that 
eminent  office.  It  may  fairly  be  taken  that  he  was  an 
honest,  earnest,  sincere  man;  one  who  had  boldness  enough 
to  plead  against  social  wrongs  and  also  sufficient  acumen  to 
express  himself  and  plead  for  changes  in  a  manner  and 
tone  which  enabled  all  persons  to  read  him  with  pleasure 
and  to  weigh  with  benefit  his  powerful  arguments. 

His  "Utopia"  was  first  printed  in  Latin,  at  Louvain,  in 
1516.  The  most  important  translations  into  English  are 
first  that  by  Robinson,  issued  in  1551,  1556,  1597,  1621 
and  1639.  This  was  republished  by  Dibdin  in  1808,  and 
again  by  E.  Arber  in  1869.  The  second  was  by  Bishop 
Burnet,  who  brought  out  his  translation  in  1684.  This  was 
reproduced  in  nine  subsequent  editions.  The  third  most 
important  translation  was  published  by  Arthur  Cayley  in 
1808. 

Dr.  Johnson  esteemed  More's  reputation  as  standing 
above  that  of  Erasmus  or  Micyllus;1  and  More,  as  father 
of  English  prose,2  is  considered  to  have  done  for  Eng- 

1  Journey  into  North  Wales,  July  15,  1774. 

2  More's  controversial  works  were  written  by  him  in  English,  and 
probably  also  the  History  of  Richard  III.,  Life  of  Edward  V.,  etc. 


UTOPIA. 


171 


lish  style  what  Chaucer,  as  father  of  English  verse,  accom- 
plished for  the  English  vocabulary. 

Sir  Thomas  Move's  happy  creation  of  the  word 
"Utopia,"  literally  "No  place"  or  "No  where,"  introduced 
a  new  word  into  the  English  vocabulary,  with  a  wide  range 
of  meaning,  from  ideal  to  chimerical  perfection.  More 
depicted  "a  state  of  equal  social  opportunity  and  not, 
"social  equality,"  and  the  dominant  note  of  his  whole 
book  is  "social  reconstruction."  In  the  "Anatomy  of 
"Melancholy,"  Burton  declares  "Utopian  parity  is  a 
"kind  of  government  to  be  wished  for  rather  than 
"effected;"  and  Euskin  declares1  that  Utopianism  "is  an- 
"other  of  the  devil's  pet  words,"  and  proceeds  to  argue  that 
the  "admission  which  we  are  all  of  us  so  ready  to  make, 
"that  because  things  have  long  been  wrong,  it  is  impossible 
"they  should  ever  be  right,  is  one  of  the  most  fatal  sources 
"of  misery  and  crime." 

'From  the  time  of  Plato  downwards  speculative  theories 
of  what  would  be  an  ideal  condition  of  life  and  government 
has  been  a  favorite  subject  with  writers  on  social  topics, 
and  it  is  impossible  to  doubt  that  Sir  Thomas  More  and  the 
long  stretch  of  writers  who  describe  their  varied  Utopian 
schemes  of  government  have  done  much  good.  It  never 
can  fail  to  be  of  use  that  people  should  set  up  a  better  model 
for  consideration,  and  Utopists  of  the  last  four  centuries 
have  been  public  benefactors.  All  praise,  therefore,  to 
More,  who  to  a  large  extent  has  been,  if  not  the  creator,  at 
least  the  foremost  exponent  of  this  class  of  literature. 

By  Roman  Catholics  Sir  Thomas  More,  for  his  firmness 

1  Architecture  and  Painting,  II. 


172  HITHER   AND    THITHEK. 

in  tlie  matter  of  the  question  of  Henry  VIII.'s  divorce,  has 
been  very  highly  distinguished.  Sidney  Lee1  records  that 
Gregory  XIII.,  on  succeeding  to  the  papal  throne,  bestowed 
on  More  the  honor  of  public  veneration  in  the  English  Col- 
lege at  Rome.  On  December  1,  1886,  he  was  beatified  by 
Pope  Leo  XIII. 

To  the  1518  edition  of  "Utopia,"  Holbein  contributed  a 
map  and  a  picture  of  More  and  his  friends  "listening  to 
"Raphael's  narration,"  and  permitted  engraved  borders 
already  in  other  books  to  reappear  there.  Holbein,  who 
had  stayed  with  More  at  Chelsea  for  three  years,  returned 
his  hospitality  by  painting  portraits  of  him  and  his 
family. 

'Diet,  of  Nat.  Biog. 


Six  " Greatest"  Books. 


VI. 

Franklin's  "Autobiography." 


THE  impossibility  of  formulating  any  rule  by  which 
it  could  be  decided  whether  any  particular  work 
should  be  counted  one  of  the  greatest  books,  or 
should  not  be  so  accounted  was  very  humorously  shown  in 
the  contest  which  arose  over  Sir  John  Lubbock's  list  of 
"The  Hundred  Best  Books."  Sir  John  Lubbock  an- 
nounced "that  he  did  not  treat  the  hundred  he  had  chosen 
"as  being  the  hundred  best  books,  but  as  those  which,  on 
"the  whole,  he  considered  the  best  worth  reading."  Mr. 
Ruskin  "put  his  pen  lightly  through  the  needless  and  blot- 
"tesquely  rubbish  and  poison  of  Sir  John's  list." 

Apart  from  the  intrinsic  interest  of  the  book  itself,  it  is 
probably  "the  earliest  American  book  that  acquired  and 
"sustained  a  great  popularity."  Undoubtedly  it  stands 
out  as  one  of  the  foremost  books  of  general  and  perpetual 
interest.  The  story  of  the  book  from  its  bibliographical 
side  has  been  frequently  told.  It  was  written  in  install- 
ments :  the  first  part,  giving  Franklin's  life  until  his  mar- 
riage, in  1730,  was  written  in  England,  at  the  house  of  a 
friend,  and  in  remembrance  of  the  man  and  the  greatness 


174  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

of  his  work  the  room  in  which  it  was  written  was  always 
afterwards  known  as  "Dr.  Franklin's  room."  The  second 
part  was  written  in  1784  at  Passy,  near  Paris.  The  third 
part  was  written  in  1788  in  Philadelphia,  and  the  fourth, 
consisting  of  a  few  pages  only,  was  concerned  more  with 
politics  than  mere  autobiography.  The  third  and  fourth 
parts  were  written  when  Franklin  was  over  eighty  years  of 
age.  Having  regard  to  the  great  value  of  this  book,  it  is 
remarkable  with  how  much  unwillingness  Franklin  ap- 
plied himself  to  write  it.  This  may  largely  be  accounted 
for  when  it  is  remembered  how  deeply  the  great  philoso- 
pher was  engaged  in  affairs  of  State. 

Immediately  after  his  death  the  first  portion  was  pub- 
lished in  French  in  Paris.  It  was  then  re-translated  into 
English,  in  which  form  it  appeared  in  London,  and  was 
accepted  both  in  Great  Britain  and  America  as  the  authors 
original  work.  Finally  the  "Autobiography"  was  pub- 
lished by  Franklin's  grandson,  William  Temple  Franklin, 
from  a  copy  of  the  original  manuscript.1 

1  There  were  two  manuscript  copies  of  the  "Autobiography."  One 
had  been  sent  by  Franklin  to  M.  le  Veillard,  and  one  in  Franklin's 
own  hand-writing  came  into  possession  of  William  Temple  Franklin, 
upon  Benjamin's  death.  On  the  publication  of  the  French  edition  of 
the  first  part  in  1791,  M.  le  Veillard  stated:  "I  do  not  know  by 
"what  means  the  translator  has  procured  them,  but  I  declare  and 
"think  it  ought  to  be  known  that  he  did  not  have  them  from  me ; 
"that  I  had  no  part  in  this  translation,"  etc.  (Letter  to  the  "Journal 
"de  Paris,"  1791).  William  Temple  Franklin  did  not  publish  his 
grandfather's  "Autobiography"  until  1817  (American  edition  1818). 
and  then  cxiriously,  he  exchanged  with  Mine,  le  Veillard  (M.  le  Veil- 
lard having  died  previously)  the  autograph  copy  Franklin  had  left 
him  for  the  copy  that  Franklin  had  sent  to  M.  le  Veillard.  The 
reason  for  this  exchange  was  that  M.  le  Veillard's  copy  was  better 
written  and  easier  for  the  printer  to  read.  Hence  the  edition  of 
1817  (copied  by  Sparks)  was  printed  from  the  copy  presented  to  M. 
le  Veillard  by  Franklin,  and  not  from  the  autograph  copy  left  to 
the  grandson.     Upon  the  death  of  the  widow  le  Veillard,  the  auto- 


franklin's  autobiography.  175 

It  was  undoubtedly  desirable  that  this  remarkable  book 
should  be  printed  from  the  original  manuscript,  as  it 
enabled  many  curious  blunders  in  the  early  English  edition 
to  be  corrected.  One  such  blunder  may  be  mentioned — the 
translator  of  the  edition  published  by  Mr.  J.  Parsons  calls 
one  of  the  ballads  that  Franklin  wrote  in  his  boyhood  "The 
"Tragedy  of  Pharo."  "None  would  recognize  under  this 
"title  the  little  song  which  was  known  as  'The  Lighthouse 
"  'Tragedy.'  The  explanation  of  this  droll  mistake  is 
"found  in  the  fact  that  the  word  lighthouse  used  in  the 
"French  copy  was  'Phare,'  and  the  Frenchman  translated 
"the  title  of  the  poem  as  "La  Tragedie  du  Phare !'  "  There 
are  at  least  five  editions  in  French,  "all  being  distinct  and 
"different  translations." 

One  of  the  earliest  critical  notices  of  the  "Autobiogra- 
phy" will  be  found  in  the  Monthly  Review  of  1794. 
The  general  interest  of  readers  in  it  can  be  very  practi- 
cally proved  by  examining  the  records  of  public  libraries 
and  seeing  how  frequently  the  "Autobiography"  is  called 
for.  In  one  library  in  New  York  the  book  was  taken  out 
during  one  year  more  than  four  hundred  times.    Professor 

graph  copy  passed  into  the  hands  of  her  daughter,  and  upon  her  death 
in  1834,  it  became  the  property  of  M.  P.  de  Senarmont.  John  Bigelow, 
in  his  "The  Life  of  Benjamin  Franklin,"  (1874)  tells  how  he  learnt 
of  the  existence  of  the  autograph  copy,  and  how  he  secured  this  price- 
less treasure,  on  January  26,  1867.     He  says 

"I  availed  myself  of  my  earliest  leisure  to  subject  the  memoirs 
"to  a  careful  collation  with  the  edition  which  appeared  in  London 
"in  1817,  and  which  was  the  first  and  only  edition  that  ever  pur- 
ported to  have  been  printed  from  the  manuscript.  The  results  of 
"this  collation  revealed  the  curious  facts  that  more  than  twelve  hun- 
"dred  separate  and  distinct  changes  had  been  made  in  the  text,  and, 
"what  is  more  remarkable,  that  the  last  eight  pages  of  the  manu- 
script, which  are  second  in  value  to  no  other  eight  pages  of  the 
"work,  were  omitted  entirely."  In  Mr.  Bigelow's  "Life,"  the  text  of 
the  autograph  copy  was  given. 


176  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

McMaster,  in  his  "Life  of  Franklin,"  included  in  the 
"American  Men  of  Letters  Series,"  says  "if  it  be  put  with 
"books  of  its  kind  and  judged  as  an  autobiography,  it  is 
"beyond  doubt  the  very  best;  if  it  be  treated  as  a  piece  of 
"writing  and  judged  as  literature,  it  must  be  pronounced 
"the  equal  of  'Robinson  Crusoe,'  one  of  the  everlasting 
"books  in  the  English  language."  A  book  must  stand  very- 
high  in  general  estimation  when  it  can  also  be  favorably 
compared  with  Pepys's  "Diary."  The  "Autobiography"  of 
Franklin,  besides  claiming  the  attention  of  readers  on 
account  of  its  intrinsic  interest,  commands  remembrance 
from  its  having  marked  a  brilliant  departure  in  American 
literature. 

It  would  be  a  slight  to  Franklin's  memory  to  omit  to 
mention  that  to  him  is  due  the  credit  of  having  founded 
the  Library  Company  of  Philadelphia,  which  was  com- 
menced in  1731,  and  is  familiarly  known  as  "the  mother 
"of  subscription  libraries." 

Franklin  was  a  great  man,  his  "Autobiography"  is  a 
famous  book  and  it  is  gratifying  to  know  that  a  new  and 
excellently -prepared  edition  of  his  "Life  and  Works"  is 
in  preparation1  and  is  to  be  given  to  the  world  at  the  time 
of  the  celebration  of  his  bi-centenary,  on  January  17, 
1906. 

1  Edited,  by  Professor  Albert  H.  Smyth. 


Facsimiles  of  the  Manuscripts 
of  Tacitus. 


Fac-Similes  of  the  Manuscripts 
of  Tacitus.1 


APT  quotations  are  frequently  made,  and  yet  it  is  not 
always  easy  to  give  the  authority.  Public  and 
other  speakers  will  often  tell  you  "When  they  have 
"made  the  world  a  solitude,  they  call  it  peace ;"  or,  again, 
"Everything  unknown  is  magnified,"  "Forbidden  things 
"have  a  secret  charm,"  "We  accomplish  more  by  prudence 
"than  by  violence."  These  and  many  more  are  familiar 
quotations  from  the  celebrated  Latin  author,  Tacitus,  who 
lived  during  the  last  half  of  the  first  century.  He  was  a 
friend  of  the  younger  Pliny,  and  was  the  renowned  author 
of  a  narrative  of  events  in  the  reigns  of  Galba,  Otho, 
Vitellius,  Vespasian,  Titus  and  Domitian.  There  have 
been  many  editions  of  his  works;  some  in  the  original 
Latin,  with  notes,  and  others  in  the  form  of  simple  transla- 
tions. The  text  of  his  "Annals"  has  been  mainly  founded 
on  two  celebrated  manuscripts  known  as  the  Medicean 
Codices.     Photographic   fac-similcs   of   these   two   manu- 

1  Codex  Laurentianus  Mcdieeus  68  I — Codex  Laurentianus  68  II. 
(Codices  Graeci  et  Latini  ....  Tome  VII,  1902:  pars  prior  et  pars 
posterior. ) 


180  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

scripts  have  recently  been  issued.  The  original  manuscripts 
themselves  are  preserved  in  the  Laurentian  Library,  at 
Florence,  and  form  a  part  of  the  enormous  collection  of 
ten  thousand  manuscripts  by  Greek  and  Latin  classical 
authors  there  gathered  together.  These  two  manuscripts 
of  Tacitus  are  among  the  most  treasured  of  this  collection. 

There  is  no  certainty  as  to  the  proenomen  of  Tacitus. 
In  the  first  manuscript  he  is  called  Publius  Cornelius 
Tacitus,  but  in  the  second  he  is  described  only  as  Cornelius 
Tacitus.     In  other  places  he  has  been  designated  Gaius. 

Manuscript  No.  1  is  on  sheets  of  parchment  measuring 
9%  x  7%  inches.  This  writing  forms  the  sole  authority 
for  Books  I-IV,  a  fragment  of  Book  V,  and  Book  VI,  of 
the  "Annals,"  as  they  are  generally  called,  although  there 
seems  to  be  no  real  authority  for  that  title.  In  the  first 
manuscript  the  books  are  called  "ab  excessu  Augusti,"  a 
title  similar  to  that  of  the  words  of  Livy,  "ab  urbe  condita." 

The  first  manuscript  is  necessarily  considered  to  be  the 
best,  as  it  is  also  the  oldest  manuscript,  of  any  part  of  the 
works  of  this  historian.  Philip  Beroaldo,  the  younger,  an 
Italian  scholar  and  writer  of  great  reputation,  was  libra- 
rian of  the  Vatican  in  1516,  and  edited  the  books  com- 
prised in  this  manuscript  in  editions  published  in  Rome  in 
1515,  Lyons  in  1542  and  Paris  in  1608.  They  were  all 
in  folio.  Beroaldo  dedicated  the  work  to  Pope  Leo  X, 
who  gave  500  sequins  for  the  parchment  from  which  it  was 
copied  to  Angelo  Arcomboldo,  who  brought  it  from  the 
Abbey  of  Corvey  in  Westphalia.  A  full  account  of  the 
first  edition  of  the  first  five  books  of  the  "Annals"  pub- 
lished at  Rome  in  1515  is  to  be  found  in  Dibdin's  Cata- 
logue of  Earl  Spencer's  Library.     On  the  reverse  of  the 


TACITUS    FAC-SIMILES.  181 

last  leaf  of  that  edition  is  given  a  print  of  the  Papal  arms 
and  the  Pontiff's  offer  of  a  remuneration  to  those  who 
should  discover  ancient  works  not  previously  edited.  Man- 
uscript No.  1,  is  of  the  ninth  century,  and  was  discovered 
about  the  year  1520 ;  but,  as  will  be  noticed,  it  lacks  Books 
VII-IX,  and  for  what  remains  of  these  "Annals"  the  Medi- 
cean  Codex,  No.  2,  written  in  the  eleventh  or  twelfth  cen- 
tury, is  the  only  authority. 

This  second  manuscript  is  written  on  sheets  of  parch- 
ment measuring  lS1/^  x  10^/2  inches.  It  is  in  Lombard 
characters,  and  comprises  Books  XI-XVI  of  the  "Annals." 
Some  of  the  original  pages,  notably  folios  49,  100  and  101, 
have  faded,  and  at  some  time  some  librarian  has  interlined 
the  words  that  have  faded  away  as  accurately  as  he  could 
read  them. 

These  manuscripts  are  reproduced  and  form  the  seventh 
in  a  series  of  twelve  codices  now  in  course  of  publication 
at  Ley  den  by  A.  W.  Sijthoff',  under  the  title  "Codices 
"Graeci  et  Latini."  The  fac-simile  has  been  done  with 
extreme  care,  and  in  the  margins  will  be  found  a  series  of 
annotations,  the  majority  of  which  are  attributed  to  Bero- 
aldo.  The  Codices  previously  published  comprise  the  Col- 
bertine  Old  Testament  in  Greek,  portions  of  St.  Augustine, 
Bede,  Horace,  Ovid,  Servius,  a  magnificent  copy  of 
Plato  in  two  volumes,  Plautus  and  Homer's  Iliad.1  The 
volumes  are  attractively  bound  in  wooden  covers,  with 
three-quarter  leather  backs,  the  whole  presenting  a  very 
mediaeval  appearance. 

1  Subsequently  facsimiles  of  Terence  and  Aristophanes  have  been 
issued.  For  remarks  on  the  Terence  fac-similes,  see  "Fac-similes  of 
"portions  of  the  works  of  Terence,  the  Poet  and  Dramatist." 


Facsimiles  of 

Portions  of  the  Works  of 

Terence,  the  Poet  and  Dramatist. 


Fac-Similes  of  Portions  of  the 

Works  of  Terence,  the 

Poet  and  Dramatist. 


THE  eighth  of  a  series  of  twelve  of  the  oldest  and 
most  precious  Greek  and  Latin  manuscripts  now 
in  course  of  publication  by  A.  AY.  Sijthoff,  of 
Leyden,  was  issued  in  May,  1904-.1  The  volume  consists 
mainly  of  a  photographic  fac-simile  of  a  celebrated  manu- 
script of  Terence,  preserved  in  the  Ambrosian  Library  of 
Milan.  Much  interest  attaches  to  this  manuscript,  from 
the  fact  that  it  is  elaborately  illustrated,  and  gives  a  large 
number  of  drawings  of  the  principal  characters  in  leading 
scenes  from  Terence's  plays.  There  are  included  ninety- 
one  pictures  from  other  codices  of  Terence  and  some  of  the 
very  early  typographic  editions  of  this  author.  The  work 
contains  an  elaborate  preface  by  Eric  Bethe. 

The  principal  manuscripts  of  Terence  are  nine  in  num- 
ber, and  one  of  the  two  preserved  in  the  Vatican  Library, 

1  Codices  Graeci  et  Latini.  Toraus  VIII.  Terentius  Codex 
Ambrosianus  H.  75  inf.  .  .  .  Praefatua  eat  Ericua  Bethe.  .  .  . 
Lugduni  Batavorum,  A.  W.  Sijthoff,  1903. 


186  HITHER  AND   THITHER. 

known  as  the  Vatican  Codex  No.  2,1  is  of  the  ninth  century 
and  of  special  interest,  as  it  contains  drawings  of  the 
masks  worn  by  the  actors.  One  preserved  in  the  Library 
of  Paris,2  of  which  twenty-three  pages  in  fac-simile  are 
given  in  the  volume  under  description,  is  full  of  large 
illustrations  of  the  scenes  in  the  different  plays,  from 
which  much  amusement  and  instruction  can  be  obtained. 
In  the  Vatican  Codex  No.  2,  we  have  a  portrait  of  the 
Roman  author  himself.  Other  portraits  are  given  in  one  or 
two  of  the  remaining  manuscripts,  but  the  one  mentioned 
seems  the  best  of  them,  though  whether  it  is  a  good  portrait 
or  not  must  remain  undecided,  as  we  know  how,  in  books 
like  the  Nuremberg  Chronicle,  one  portrait  is  made  to  do 
for  many  persons. 

Bethe's  introduction  deals  principally  with  the  textual 
variations  between  the  various  codices.  Little  seems  to 
be  known  of  the  origin  of  the  Ambrosian  manuscript,  which 
consists  of  one  hundred  and  twenty  leaves  of  parchment, 
written  on  both  sides.  The  leaves  are  a  little  over  nine 
inches  in  height  by  eight  inches  in  width.  Folio  84 
is  included  in  Chatelain's  collection  of  the  Palaeography 
of  Latin  Classics,  being  there  described  as  a  writing  of 
the  ninth  century.  The  first  notice  of  the  manuscript 
appears  to  be  by  the  celebrated  critic,  Cardinal  Angelo 
Mai,  an  associate  in  the  Ambrosian  Library,  who  pub- 
lished some  commentaries  and  unpublished  drawings  of 
Terence  in  1815.3     Bethe  and  most  other  authorities  treat 

'  Codex  Vaticanus  3868,  fol.  2r. 

'Codex  Parisinus  7899. 

3  M.  Acci.  Plauti  fragmenta  inedita  .  .  .  Mediolani,  1815. 


TERENCE  FACSIMILIES.  187 

the  Codex  as  belonging  to  the  tenth  or  eleventh  century. 
Mai  seems  to  be  the  only  writer  who  particularly  noticed 
the  manuscript  until  Umpfenbach,  who  published  an  edi- 
tion of  the  comedies  of  Terence  in  1870,  and  gave  a  full 
account  of  the  variations  between  the  various  manuscripts, 
including  the  Ambrosian  Codex,  in  his  preface  and  notes. 

We  have  preserved  to  us  only  six  of  the  comedies  of 
Terence,  and  it  is,  perhaps,  interesting  to  know  that  in 
anticipation  of  the  methods  of  many  modern  critics,  who 
have  ascertained  that  no  celebrated  author  really  wrote  the 
books  attributed  to  him,  Terence  was  accused  of  not 
having  written  the  plays  known  as  his.  But  in  the  same 
way  as  we  deal  with  the  questions  whether  Bunyan  wrote 
"The  Pilgrim's  Progress"  or  made  a  translation  of  his 
immortal  allegory  from  a  Latin  manuscript;  whether 
Shakespeare  wrote  his  plays  or  not ;  whether  Milton  copied 
Vondel,  and  so  on,  the  majority  are  content  to  believe  that 
Terence  was  the  author  of  the  six  plays  attributed  to  him. 
They  have  been  used,  from  time  to  time,  by  successive 
writers,  and  adapted  to  later  purposes  by  various  English 
dramatists,  notably  Steele,  Garrick  and  Cumberland;  as 
well  as  by  Moliere,  Baron  and  others.  This  is  not  the 
place  to  comment  on  the  plays,  of  which,  however,  Scaliger 
said :  "There  are  not  three  imperfections  in  the  whole 
"six  plays,"  while  Madame  Dacier  observed  that  "it  would 
"be  difficult  to  determine  which  of  his  six  plays  deserved 
"preference,  since  they  had  each  of  them  their  peculiar 
"excellences." 

In  one  of  the  early  typographical  editions  of  Terence,  a 
picture    is    given    of    the    "Theatrum."      It    is    interest- 


188  HITHER  AND  THITHER. 

ing,  not  only  as  showing  what  was  thought  to  be  a 
picture  of  the  pulpitum,  or  raised  stage;  but  as  probably 
not  a  bad  illustration  of  the  principal  features  of  a 
theatre  at  the  time  when  the  particular  edition1  of 
Terence  from  which  this  illustration  is  taken  (1493)  was 
printed. 

In  the  play  of  "Heauton-timoroumenos"  ("The 
"Self-Tormentor")  is  given  an  illustration  in  which 
four  of  the  chief  characters  are  shown.  To  this 
play  Chapman  owed  a  portion  of  the  plot  of  his  "All 
"Fooles."  In  the  "Phormio"  is  to  be  found  another  very 
characteristic  illustration.  In  it  are  shown  two  side  scenes, 
or  wings,  while  in  nearly  every  other  case  only  one,  either 
on  the  left  or  right,  is  given.  It  was  from  this  play  that 
Moliere  took  the  idea  of  one  of  his  most  extravagant  farces, 
"The  Cheats  of  Scapin." 

The  illustrations  of  Terence  have  attracted  a  great  deal 
of  attention,  and  twenty-six  of  them,  comprising  the  com- 
plete set  for  the  "Phormio,"  were  taken  in  1893  from  the 
Vatican  Codex  No.  2,  for  the  use  of  the  classical  depart- 
ment of  Harvard  University.  The  Parisian  Codex  is 
placed  on  exhibition  in  a  special  case  at  the  Bibliotheque 
Rationale. 
1  Terentius  a  Jobauue  Trechsel.     Editus  Lugduni,  1493. 


The  Text  of  the  Bible. 


The  Text  of  the  Bible. 


FOR  several  centuries  not  only  learned  scholars,  but 
thousands  of  others  have  expended  lives  of  labor 
in  studying  the  text  of  the  Bible.  Yet  it  is  only 
recently  that  nineteenth  century  invention,  by  enabling  us 
to  produce  exact  fac-similes  of  invaluable  manuscripts, 
has  placed  it  within  the  power  of  library  owners  to  have 
on  their  shelves  reproductions  of  the  most  ancient  copies 
of  the  Book  of  Books,  on  which  they  can  bestow  a  casual 
interested  examination  or  a  minute  study,  as  their  leisure 
or  inclination  shall  dictate.  Thanks  to  the  liberality  of 
the  trustees  of  the  British  Museum,  the  custodians  of 
the  Vatican  Library  and  the  Emperor  of  Eussia,  anyone, 
at  a  cost  of  from  $450  to  $500,  can  now  gather  in  one 
room,  not  only  printed  editions  of  the  three  oldest  known 
manuscripts  of  the  Bible  in  the  world,  which,  however 
correctly  examined  by  argus-eyed  proof-readers,  are  liable 
to  contain  misprints ;  but,  better  still,  splendid  reproduc- 
tions of  the  three  most  important  "texts"  of  the  Scriptures, 
two  of  them  printed  from  special  types,  and  the  third  (the 
Codex  Aloxandrinus)  produced  by  photo-lithography.  An 
examination  of  thorn  shows  that  there  is  much  of  ordinary 


192  HITHEB    AND    THITHEK. 

and  general  interest  which  deserves  notice  for  that  large 
class  who  like  to  read  about  exceptional  publications. 

It  is  a  very  remarkable  fact  that  out  of  the  two  hundred 
or  more  manuscripts  of  portions,  more  or  less  complete,  of 
the  Bible  contained  in  the  great  libraries  of  the  world,  the 
three  principal,  known  as  the  Alexandrine,  Vatican  and 
Sinaitic  codices,  are  in  the  possession,  one  each,  of  the 
three  great  divisions  of  the  Christian  Church.1  The 
Alexandrine  is  in  the  custody  of  the  English  Church,  the 
Vatican,  as  its  name  indicates,  in  that  of  the  Eoman 
Catholic  Church,  and  the  Sinaitic  in  that  of  the  Greek 
Church.  In  somewhat  similar  manner  as  the  three  great 
cities  of  these  centers  of  Christendom,  have  magnificent 
domed  buildings  as  their  principal  churches — namely,  St 
Paul's  Cathedral  in  London,  St.  Peter's  in  Rome,  and  St. 
Isaac's  in  St.  Petersburg — so  each  of  the  three  branches  of 
the  Church,  has  as  one  of  its  principal  glories,  one  of  these 
priceless  manuscripts.  The  Alexandrine,  transcribed  a 
little  more  than  four  hundred  years  after  Christ,  was  pres- 
ented to  King  Charles  in  England  in  1628.  The  date  when 
the  Vatican  Library  obtained  its  chief  treasure  is  not 
known;  but  it  is  included  in  the  first  catalogue  of  that 
library,  made  in  1475,  and  is  in  a  fourth  century  hand- 
writing. The  Sinaitic  codex  was  discovered  in  ou-r  own- 
days  by  the  great  scholar,  Constantine  Tischendorf,  in 
1859,  and  "presented"  by  him,  in  Xovember  of  that  year, 

'The  fourth  groat  uncial  codex  is  the  Codex  Ephraemi  (generally 
referred  to  as  Codex  C)  of  the  fifth  century.  This  codex  is,  however, 
very  imperfect  and  barelv  legible,  the  ancient  writing  having  been 
almost  removed  by  a  mediaeval  scribe  to  make  way  for  the  writings 
of  Ephraem  Syrus. 


THE  TEXT  OF  THE   BIBLE.  193 

to  the  Emperor  Alexander  II.  It  is  probably  a  little  older 
than  the  Vatican  copy.  It  is  peculiar  that  the  Alexandrine 
codex  is  written  throughout  in  double  columns,  and 
the  Vatican  and  Sinaitic  mainly  in  three  and  four  columns, 
respectively.  In  each  manuscript  the  poetical  portions  are 
written  stichometrically ;  that  is,  in  two  columns  upon  a 
page. 

The  writing  in  each  of  the  manuscripts  is  uncial,  that 
is,  in  one  style  of  letters,  closely  resembling  capitals,  with- 
out any  stops  or  even  any  division  between  the  words.  The 
term  comes  from  the  Latin  word  wacia,  an  inch,  the  letters 
sometimes  being  an  inch  long.  An  idea  of  the  appearance 
of  the  writings  may  be  obtained  by  transcribing  a  short 
passage  of  the  Bible  in  uncial  fashion,  remembering,  of 
course,  that  the  codices  in  question  are  in  Greek,  and  that 
each  line  was  filled  up  regardless  whether  a  word  was 
broken  in  the  middle  of  a  syllable  or  not.  Using  Eng- 
lish for  Greek  characters,  the  appearance  of  the  leaves  is 
therefore  somewhat  after  this  fashion : 

THUSSAITHTHELORDTH 

EYALSOTHATUPHOLDE 

GYPTSHALLFALLANDT 

HEPRIDEOFHERPOWER 

SIIALLCOMEDOWNFROM 

The  fac-simile  of  the  Alexandrine  codex  was  printed 
by  order  of  the  trustees  of  the  British  Museum  in  1879- 
1883,  in  four  folio  volumes,  by  autotype  process.  The 
original  has  been  bound  in  a  similar  number  of  volumes, 
and  the  arms  of  King  Charles  I.  are  emblazoned  on  the 

13 


194  HITHER  AND  THITHER. 

covers.  Volumes  I  to  III  contain  the  Old  Testament,  in 
the  Septuagint  version,  and  the  fourth  the  New  Testament. 
Apart,  too,  from  some  defects  from  loss  of  some  leaves  of 
the  original,  single  letters  have  in  several  places  been  cut 
off  in  the  process  of  binding.  This  is  always  designated  as 
"Codex  A,"  it  having  been  the  first  that  was  thoroughly 
studied  by  scholars,  though  it  has  been  since  outranked  in 
antiquity  by  the  Vatican  and  Sinaitic  copies.  On  the  first 
folio  of  the  text  is  a  note  in  Arabic,  reading,  "Made  an 
"inalienable  gift  to  the  Patriarchal  cell  in  the  city  of 
"Alexandria.  Whosoever  shall  remove  it  thence  shall  be 
"accursed  and  cut  off.  Written  by  Athanasius  the 
"humble."  He  is  supposed  to  have  been  Athanasius  III., 
the  Melchite  Patriarch,  who  was  still  living  in  the  year 

1308. 

On  a  flyleaf  at  the  beginning  of  the  first  volume  is  a 
note  in  Latin,  in  a  hand  of  the  seventeenth  century,  "Given 
"to  the  Patriarchal  cell  in  the  year  of  Martyrs  814,"  to 
which  is  added  in  pencil,  "+  A.  D.  284  equals  1098." 
But  for  this  date  Sir  E.  Maunde  Thompson,  the  librarian 
at  the  British  Museum,  says,  there  is  "no  authority  what- 
ever in  any  part  of  the  manuscript." 

On  the  back  of  Folio  4  is  another  inscription,  in  Arabic, 
to  which  has  been  added  a  Latin  translation  in  the  hand- 
writing of  Dr.  Richard  Bentley,  who  held  the  office  of 
librarian  from  1693  to  1724,  that  "some  persons  record 
"that  this  book  was  written  by  the  hands  of  the  martyr 
"Thecla."  The  tradition  of  the  Church  of  Alexandria 
that  Saint  Thecla  was  the  scribe  is  preserved  in  a  state- 
ment written  by  the  Patriarch  Cyril  Lucar,  of  Constanti- 


THE    TEXT    OF    THE    BIBLE.  195 

nople,  who,  in  a  Latin  memorandum  of  thirteen  lines, 
occupying  the  whole  of  the  right  side  of  Folio  2,  records 
that  this  book  written  in  Greek,  containing  the  New  and 
Old  Testaments,  was,  "as  we  have  received  from  tradition," 
written  by  the  hand  of  Thecla,  a  noble  Egyptian  lady, 
(some  thirteen  hundred  years  before  we  acquired  it),  "a 
"little  after  the  Council  of  Nice."  He  adds  that  her  name 
appeared  in  a  subscription  appended  to  the  manuscript, 
which  had  been  destroyed  long  before  his  time.  Cyril 
removed  the  manuscript  from  Alexandria  about  the  time 
of  his  promotion  from  the  See  of  Alexandria  to  that  of 
Constantinople,  in  1621 ;  and  later  presented  it  to  James  I. 
of  England,  through  Sir  Thomas  Roe,  the  English 
Ambassador  at  Constantinople,  but  failed  to  place  it  in  the 
hands  of  Sir  Thomas  until  after  the  death  of  that  king. 
In  a  letter  to  Lord  Arundel,  dated  January  30,  1625,  the 
story  of  its  origin  was  embellished,  for  the  Ambassador 
there  states  that  the  Patriarch  had  described  the  manu- 
script to  him  as  "written  by  Thecla,  the  protomartyr  in  the 
"time  of  Saint  Paul."  This  he  modified  in  a  subsequent 
letter,  dated  1627,  addressed  to  Archbishop  Abbot,  where 
he  notes  that  the  "Patriarch  doth  testify  under  his  hand 
"that  it  was  written  by  the  Virgin  Thecla,  daughter  of  a 
"famous  Greek  called  Abgierienos,  who  founded  the 
"monastery  in  Egypt  upon  Pharoas  (sic)  tower,  a  devout, 
"learned  maid,  who  was  persecuted  in  Asia  and  to  whom 
"Gregory  ISTazianzen  hath  written  many  epistles.  .  .  .  She 
"died  not  long  after  the  Council  of  Nice."  The  tradition 
can  hardly  have  had  any  foundation  in  fact.  In  1628 
it  was  presented  to  Charles  I.,  seventeen  years  too  late, 


196  HITHER    AND    THITHEK. 

unfortunately,  to  be  of  use  in  the  preparation  of  the 
"Authorized  Version ;"  and  when  the  British  Museum  was 
founded,  in  1753,  it  was  transferred  from  the  royal  private 
collection  to  the  national  depository. 

The  lost  leaves  of  the  New  Testament  comprise  all  prior 
to  verse  6  of  chapter  xxv  of  Saint  Matthew's  Gospel ;  the 
passage  from  Saint  John  vi :  50,  to  Saint  John  viii :  52, 
and  II  Corinthians  iv:  13,  to  xii:  6.  At  the  close,  how- 
ever, by  way  of  compensation,  is  found  the  "only  extant 
"copy  of  the  earliest  of  the  Apostolic  Fathers,  the  Epistle 
"of  Clement  of  Rome  to  the  Corinthians,  together  with 
"a  part  of  a  second  epistle  whose  authorship  is  more 
"doubtful."  * 

The  manuscript  consists  of  seven  hundred  and  seventy- 
three  leaves,  with  one  or  more  modern  leaves  to  each 
volume,  the  size  of  the  leaves  being  12%  x  10  inches.  The 
manuscript  was  numbered  in  Arabic  numerals  of  the  four- 
teenth century  on  the  verso  sides,  and  has  been  repaged 
throughout  by  Patrick  Young,  the  librarian  to  Charles  L, 
with  a  separate  numeration  for  each  Testament;  the  New 
Testament  commencing  with  the  number  26  to  allow  for 
the  loss  of  the  first  twenty-five  leaves.  The  Clementine 
Epistles  were  numbered  by  a  more  recent  hand.  After 
the  list  of  canonical  books,  including  the  Clementine 
Epistles,  there  is  a  gap,  and  then  is  added,  separately, 
"The  Psalms  of  Solomon."  These  are  now  lost,  but  the 
Clementine  Epistles  were  most  admirably  edited  in  1S69- 

1  The  lacunae  in  the  Old  Testament  are  I  Kings  xii,  19,  to  xiv,  9: 
Psalms  xlix,  19,  to  lxxix,  10:  and  some  other  portions  due  to  the 
mutilation  of  the  leaves. 


THE    TEXT    OF    THE    BIBLE.  197 

1877  by  the  late  very  learned  Dr.  Lightfoot,  Bishop  of 
Durham. 

Two  reproductions  of  the  Vatican  Codex  have  been 
issued,  one  in  photographic  fac-simile,  the  other  from 
special  types.  The  manuscript  is  probably  a  hundred 
years  older  than  the  Alexandrine.  Whether  it  is  as  ancient 
as  the  Tischendorf  manuscript  is  a  matter  of  question. 
That  expert  considered  the  two  as  of  "about  the  same 
"date,"  whilst  Tregelles,  the  English  critic,  believed  the 
Vatican  copy  to  have  been  in  existence  as  early  as  the 
Council  of  Xice,  which  was  held  in  the  year  325.  Prob- 
ably the  Sinaitic  copy  is  some  fifty  years  older. 

The  Codex  Vaticanus,  generally  referred  to  as  Codex  B, 
contains  the  Old  Testament  in  Septuagint  version,  less, 
however,  all  Genesis  to  chapter  xlvi :  48,  and  Psalms 
ev  to  exxxvii,  inclusive.  In  the  New  Testament  the 
Epistles  to  Philemon  and  Titus,  the  two  to  Timothy,  the 
Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  after  chapter  ix,  verse  14,  and 
the  whole  of  the  Revelations  are  wanting.  The  manu- 
script consists  of  seven  hundred  and  fifty-nine  leaves  of 
the  finest  but  very  thin  vellum,  measuring  about  IOV2  x 
10  inches.  The  whole  is  bound  in  one  volume  in  red 
morocco.  Each  page  contains  three  columns  of  forty-two 
lines  apiece,  but  with  several  marked  peculiarities.  Words 
are  written  smaller  and  are  more  crowded  at  the  ends  of 
lines  and  many  words  are  contracted,  the  omission  of  the 
Le1  lers  in  or  n  (for  example)  at  the  end  of  a  word  being  indi- 
cated by  a  line  across  the  top  of  the  lasl  letter  written  by  the 
copyist.  Some  of  the  leaves  have  lost  their  corners,  with 
consequent  losses  of  a  greater  or  less  number  of  words,  but 


198  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

the  writing  must  "in  its  original  condition  have  been  very 
"perfect  as  a  specimen  of  penmanship,  but  nearly  the 
"whole  of  the  text  has  been  traced  over  by  a  later  hand, 
"probably  in  the  tenth  or  eleventh  century,  and  only  such 
"words  or  letters  as  were  rejected  as  readings  have  been 
"left  untouched."  The  Old  Testament,  including  the 
books  styled  Apocrypha  in  the  English  version,  are  con- 
tained in  volumes  I-IV,  and  the  New  Testament  opens 
volume  V. 

The  condition  of  the  page  ending  the  Gospel  according  to 
Saint  Mark,  has  been  much  commented  on.  In  the  English 
version  of  the  Bible  the  last  chapter  of  his  Gospel  has 
twenty  verses.  Only  the  first  eight  of  these  are  contained 
in  the  Vatican  and  Sinaitic  manuscripts.  Erom  the  fact 
that  rather  more  than  a  column  is  left  blank  in  the  Vatican 
codex,  it  has  been  argued  that  the  copyist  knew  of  the  verses 
omitted,  but  had  doubts  as  to  whether  they  were  to  be  in- 
cluded or  not.  To  this  may  be  objected  that  the  copyist 
closed  up  Saint  Mark's  Gospel  with  the  "filigree"  ornament 
with  which  the  close  of  other  books  is  indicated,  and  also 
appended  a  kind  of  finis}  hata  markon,  according  to 
Mark,  indicating  that  either  the  third  column  was  acci- 
dentally left  blank  or  that  he  had  consulted  his  superiors 
after  he  had  begun  to  transcribe  Saint  Luke,  and  was 
directed  to  close  Saint  Mark  at  verse  8  of  chapter  xvi. 

In  the  reproduction  the  missing  portions  of  the  manu- 
script are  supplied  in  modern  Greek  characters  for  the 
convenience  of  readers,  but  in  the  codex  itself  they  are 
supplied  in  a  hand  appai'ently  of  the  fifteenth  century, 
and  the  title  on  page  1  of  the  first  volume  is  written  in 
purple  letters. 


THE    TEXT    OF    THE    BIBLE.  199 

On  pages  238  and  621  of  the  codex  is  written,  in  a  large, 
flourishing  hand,  in  Greek  letters,  Clemes  monachos, 
apparently  the  signature  of  one,  Clement,  the  Monk,  the 
probable  "restorer"  of  the  manuscript,  to  whom  may  ho 
due  the  disfigurement,  caused  in  the  beautiful  uncial  writ- 
ing by  the  manuscript  being  "written  over,"  through 
some  ungrounded  fear  that  the  writing  would  fade  away. 
That  this  was  a  baseless  alarm  is  shown  by  the  perfect 
condition  of  the  words  here  and  there  left  untouched. 
Various  other  like  offenders  seem  to  have  amended  or 
altered  the  original  manuscript  by  collation  with  other 
manuscripts.  The  notes,  additions  and  alterations  have 
been  classified  and  four  hands  identified,  and  in  volume 
VI  of  the  fac-simile,  these  are  distinguished  as  the  handi- 
work of  unknowm  amanuenses,  except  so  far  as  the  name 
of  Clemes  has  been  retained,  designated  as  B  1,  B  2,  etc. 

In  the  center  of  the  last  page  of  the  codex  are  stamped 
in  red  the  letters  "R.  F.,"  which  stand  for  "Republique 
"Frangaise,"  inclosed  in  a  circular  stamp,  bordered  with 
the  words  "Bibliotheque  Rationale."  They  were  im- 
pressed on  the  manuscript  after  Napoleon,  in  1808,  had 
"transferred"  this  codex,  with  large  numbers  of  other 
treasures  of  art  and  literature,  from  Borne  to  the  Paris 
Imperial  Collection.  This  invaluable  manuscript  was 
restored  to  the  Vatican  by  the  Allies  after  the  peace  of 
1815,  and  over  the  French  marks  has  since  been  added 
that  of  the  tiara  and  keys,  in  a  circular  stamp  bearing  the 
words  "Bibliotheca  Apostolica  Vaticana." 

When  this  codex  first  came  under  scholarly  criticism, 
the  presence  throughout  of  accents  over  the  Greek  charac- 


200  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

ters,  threw  much  discredit  on  its  age.  Examination  under 
powerful  glasses,  however,  showed  that  they  were  all  added 
at  a  much  later  date,  the  ink  being  of  a  different  color  and 
kind. 

An  edition  of  the  Vatican  codex  was  undertaken  iu  1828 
by  Cardinal  Mai,  at  the  instance  of  Pope  Leo  XII.,  but  did 
not  appear  until  1857,  and  "was  extremely  inaccurate," 
having  "many  hundreds"  of  errors.  The  fac-simile  edi- 
tion, which  gives  the  text  intact,  was  issued  under  the 
auspices  of  Carolus  Vercellone  and  Josephus  Cozza, 
1869-1881,  and  has  been  of  inestimable  value  to  the 
students  of  Holy  Writ. 

The  story  how  Constantine  Tischendorf,  of  Leipzig, 
hunted  from  1843  for  the  Sinaitic  codex,  and  only 
recovered  that  priceless  manuscript  in  1850,  is  full  of 
interest,  mixed  up  as  it  is  with  the  literary  forgeries  of 
that  worthy  colleague  of  the  tribe  Psalmanazar,  Samuel 
Ireland  and  Shapira,  Dr.  Constantine  Simonides,  of 
Athens. 

As  early  as  1843  Tischendorf,  under  the  patronage  of 
his  own  sovereign,  Frederick  Augustus,  King  of  Saxony, 
visited  the  convent  of  Saint  Catherine,  in  the  peninsula 
of  Sinai.  The  convent,  apparently,  was  once  an  active 
center  of  learning  and  study,  and  a  rich  library  of  manu- 
scripts had,  probably  from  the  offerings  of  worshipers,  been 
accumulated  in  the  course  of  centuries.  As  time  went  on, 
however,  care  for  these  treasures,  and  even  knowledge  of 
their  value,  seems  to  have  dwindled,  much  as  did  the  num- 
ber of  the  monks,  which  was  reduced,  according  to  "various 
"travelers,  to  twenty-three,  twenty  and  twenty-six."   When 


THE  TEXT  OF  THE  BIBLE.  201 

access  to  the  convent  had  been  obtained  by  Teschendorf, 

he  set  about  to  examine  the  library.    His  "eye  fell  npon  a 

"large  basket  full  of  old  parchments  standing  upon  the 

"floor,  apparently  counted  of  no  value,  and  only  waiting 

"for  use  as  kindlings,"  to  which  purpose  two  basketfuls  of 

similar  fragments  had  already  been  applied.     From  this 

fire-feeder  he  rescued  forty-three  leaves.    But  his  eagerness 

had  been  too  clearly  shown,  for  having  told  the  monks  that 

their  probable  date  was  as  early  as  the  fourth  century, 

they  would  not  part  with  any  more,  the  remainder  having 

suddenly    grown    valuable    in    their    eyes.       The    leaves 

secured  were  parts  of  the  Old  Testament  in  Greek,  and 

comprised  portions  of  I  Chronicles  and  II  Esdras,  all  of 

Xehemiah  and  Esther,  and  parts  of  Tobit,  Jeremiah  and 

the    Lamentations.      They    bore    every    mark    of    great 

antiquity,  were  penned  in  oblong  folio,  written  with  four 

columns  on  each  page.1     With  these  forty-three  leaves  he 

had,  perforce,  to  be  content  for  the  time,  and  they  were 

deposited,   on  his   return,   in  the   University  Library   at 

Leipzig.     The  publication  of  an  edition  of  these  leaves  in 

1846,  under  the  title  of  the  Codex  Frederico-Augustanus, 

in  honor  of  his  patron,  created  immense  interest,  and  many 

scholars  and  governments  ransacked  all  likely  and  unlikely 

spots,  in  the  hope  of  recovering  the  remainder  of  the  manu- 

scrip.    Fortunately,  Tischendorf  had  resolutely  kept  secret 

where  he  had  found  the  forty-three  leaves.     In  1853  he 

again  visited  the  convent,  but  fruitlessly,  for  "not  a  trace 

"of  the  coveted  parchments  could  be  found."     In  1855  he 

1  These  43  leaves  were  originally  part  of  what  is  now  known  as  the 
Codex  Aleph.,  or  the  Sinaitic  Codex. 


202  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

published  two   further  pages,  of  which  he  had  secured 
copies,  but  not  the  originals,  in  1843.    Undaunted,  how- 
ever, by  the  refusal  of  the  monks  to  part  with  any  more 
parchments  at  any  price,  though  the  petition  was  enforced 
by  an  influential  coadjutor,  the  physician  to  the  Viceroy 
of  Egypt,  the  indefatigable  manuscript  seeker,  a  third  time 
visited  the    convent  in  1859,  supported    by  an  Imperial 
commission  from  the  Emperor  of  Russia,  the  head  of  the 
Eastern  Church,  to  make  an  Eastern  journey  in  the  inter- 
ests of  Biblical    science,  and  supplied  with  the  necessary 
funds  from  the  Imperial  treasury.     Again  he  reached  the 
convent,  and  when  the  library  was  cheerfully  thrown  open 
to  him  he  was  favored  with  a  display  of  manuscripts  of 
liturgies  and  treatises  of  great  value;  but  nowhere  could 
he  espy  the  one  volume  for  which  he  was  searching,  and,  as 
time  slipped  by,  he  lost  heart,     In  despair  he  had  arranged 
to  leave  on  a  certain  day,  and  on  the  previous  afternoon 
took  a  walk  with  the  oikodomos,  or  house  steward  of  the 
convent,  and  in  him  found  a  sympathetic  student.     Their 
talk  was  continued  after  their  return  to  the  convent,  and  at 
supper  time,  as  they  were  preparing  to  part  for  the  night, 
the  steward  said,  "I,  too,  have  been  reading  the  Septua- 
"gint."    As  he  spoke  he  brought  a  bulky  volume,  wrapped 
in  a  red  cloth,  from  the  corner  of  his  own  cell  and  laid  it 
in  Teschendorf's  hands. 

The  rest  of  the  story  is  soon  told.  The  first  glance 
revealed  that  the  manuscript  was  found.  Tischendorf  held 
in  his  hand  "the  most  precious  Biblical  treasure  in  exist- 
ence." His  next  request  was  for  permission  to  take  the 
manuscript  to  Cairo,  that  it  might  be  copied  in  full.     This 


THE  TEXT  OE  THE  BIBLE.  203 

the  steward  could  not  permit,  and  Teschendorf  hurried 
away  to  Cairo  to  find  the  prior  of  the  convent,  who  had  left 
for  that  city  a  day  or  two  previously,  and  in  less  than  a 
week  the  necessary  consent  was  obtained.  A  day  or  two 
later  the  manuscript  was  brought  to  Cairo,  and,  with  the 
assistance  of  two  Germans,  a  doctor  of  medicine  and  a 
druggist,  the  one  hundred  and  ten  thousand  lines  were 
transcribed,  revised  and  corrected. 

Then  came  an  overmastering  desire  to  possess  the 
original,  and  Teschendorf  suggested  that  it  should  be  pre- 
sented to  the  Emperor  of  Russia,  as  the  head  of  the  Greek 
Church ;  and  as  the  traveler,  at  this  juncture,  was  able  to 
lend  great  assistance  to  the  convent  in  the  matter  of  an 
ecclesiastical  election,  in  which  he  carried  for  them  their 
candidate,  he  urged  his  request,  which  was  emphasized 
by  the  support  of  the  Russian  Ambassador  to  Turkey. 
''The  next  day,"  says  Tischendorf,  "I  received  from  them, 
"under  the  form  of  a  loan,  the  Sinaitie  Bible  to  carry  it  to 
"St.  Petersburg,  and  there  to  have  it  copied  a6  accurately 
"as  possible."  This  he  did,  but  went  several  steps  further, 
as  in  November  of  that  year  (1859)  he  "presented"  the 
priceless  volume,  with  many  other  literary  acquisitions 
that  he  had  picked  up  in  his  travels,  to  the  Emperor 
Alexander  II.  Suffice  it  to  say  that,  however  the  mis- 
understanding arose,  whether  on  the  part  of  Tischendorf, 
or  on  the  side  of  the  monks  as  to  the  terms  of  their  loan, 
the  Emperor  has  deposited  the  copy  in  the  Imperial 
Library,  and  the  monks,  refusing  to  be  compensated,  are 
grieved  at  what  they  regard,  with  good  reason,  as  a  breach 
of  faith. 


204  HITHER    AND    THITHEE. 

The  reproduction  was  accomplished  in  1862-lS67,in  five 
atlas-quarto  volumes,  at  the  expense  of  the  Czar,  in  an 
edition  limited  to  three  hundred  copies,  two  hundred  of 
which  were  sent,  by  order  of  the  Emperor,  to  the  great 
institutions  and  libraries  throughout  the  world ;  one  hun- 
dred being  left  in  the  hands  of  the  editor,  with  liberty 
to  sell  them. 

The  codex  consists  of  three  hundred  and  forty-five  and 
one-half  leaves  of  fine  and  beautiful  vellum,  each  leaf 
measuring  about  13^/2  inches  in  length  by  rather  more 
than  141/2  inches  in  height.  The  arrangement  of  the 
writing  is  almost  unique,  being  distributed  in  four 
columns,  each  column  containing  forty-eight  lines  of  from 
twelve  to  fourteen  uncial,  or  capital  letters,  without  spaces 
between  the  words,  or  accents,  the  marks  of  punctuation 
being  exceedingly  few.  Of  the  three  hundred  and  forty- 
five  and  one-half  leaves,  one  hundred  and  ninety-nine  are 
taken  up  by  the  Septuagint  version  of  the  Old  Testament, 
exclusive  of  the  poetical  portions,  and  of  so  much  of  that 
portion  of  the  Bible  as  was  included  in  the  forty-three 
leaves  of  the  Codex  Frederico-Augustanus  before  men- 
tioned. The  poetical  portions  are  written  in  parallel 
clauses,  regulated  by  the  sense,  with  only  two  columns  on 
a  page. 

The  principal  value  of  this  codex  lies  however,  in  its 
containing  the  only  extant  copy  in  Greek  of  the  Xew  Testa- 
ment in  its  entirety.  The  Gospels  are  given  in  their  usual 
order,  then  follow  the  Pauline  Epistles,  the  Epistle  to  the 
Hebrews,  preceding  the  four  Pastoral  Letters,  then  the 
Acts  of  the  Apostles,  the  general  epistles,  and  lastly  the 
Revelations. 


THE  TEXT  OF  THE  BIBLE.  205 

It  has  been  noticed  that  the  "coincidence  of  this  manu- 
script with  readings  known  to  have  been  approved  by 
"Eusebius,  renders  it  very  probable  that  the  Codex 
"Sinaiticus  was  one  of  fifty  volumes  written  on  skins  in 
"ternions  and  quaternions  which  he  prepared  in  the  year 
"331  A.  D.,  by  Constantino's  direction,  for  the  use  of  the 
"new  Capitol."  The  value  of  this  manuscript  to  critical 
experts  cannot  be  exaggerated,  but  remembering  that  every 
time  a  rare  manuscript  is  handled  it  is  liable  to  injury,  it 
is  easy  to  understand  how  few  custodians  of  such  a  docu- 
ment are  willing  to  submit  it  for  long  and  minute  examina- 
tion. It  was,  therefore,  a  task  of  the  last  value  that,  by 
means  of  photo-lithography  and  other  processes,  copies 
should  be  multiplied  which  would  be  to  a  reader  of  pre- 
cisely the  same  value  for  study  as  the  inestimable  originals 
themselves. 


Mexican  Antiquities. 


Mexican  Antiquities. 


A  BOOK  that  cost  from  $250,000  to  $300,000  to  pub- 
lish has  few  rivals,  even  if  we  include  the 
"Description  de  l'Egypte,"  published  under  the 
auspices  of  Napoleon  I.,  and  when  it  is  added  that  the 
history  of  its  preparation  reads  like  a  romance  and  that 
it  cost  its  wealthy  author  his  life,  it  seems  worth  while  to 
note  the  remarkable  story.  The  work  is  well  known,  and 
is  generally  called  "Lord  Kiugsborough's  Mexican  Antiqui- 
"ties."1  It  consists  of  nine  large  folio  volumes.  In  the  first 
four  are  nearly  eleven  hundred  plates,  reproducing  in  fac- 
simile all  the  odd  coloring  of  twenty  old  Aztec  manuscripts, 
which  comprise  some  of  the  most  important  relics  of  that 
ancient  "literature."  Only  three  of  these  manuscripts 
have  been  interpreted  and  of  one  of  them  a  portion  of  the 
interpretation  is  lost.  When  Lord  Kingsborough  was  an 
Oxford  student  his  attention  was  drawn  to  this  interesting 
study   by   meeting    with    one   of    the    manuscripts,    the 

1  Antiquities  of  Mexico,  comprising  fac-similes  of  ancient  Mexican 
paintings  and  hieroglyphics  preserved  in  ...  .  together  with  The 
Monuments  of  New  Spain,  by  M.  Dupaix  .  .  .  the  whole  illus- 
trated by  many  valuable  inedited  manuscripts  by  Lord  Kingsborough 
.     .     .    'in  IX  volumes.    London;   1831-1848. 

14 


210  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

"Mendoza  Collection,"  in  the  Bodleian  Library,  and  he 
became  so  fascinated  with  the  subject  that  he  practically 
devoted  the  remainder  of  his  life  to  an  attempted  unravel- 
ing of  the  mysterious  hieroglyphics.  Who  shall  be  the 
Champollion  to  unlock  these  hieroglyphics  remains  to  be 
seen.  Some,  indeed,  fear  that  the  power  to  read  the 
manuscripts  will  never  be  acquired,  but  it  is  not  altogether 
hopeless  that  some  key  will  be  found,  kindred  to  the 
Bosetta  stone,  for,  says  the  historian  Gama,  "If  we  are  to 
"believe  Bustamente,  however,  a  complete  key  to  the  whole 
"system  is  at  this  moment  somewhere  in  Spain.  It  was 
"carried  home  at  the  time  of  the  process  against  Father 
"Mier,  in  1795.  The  name  of  the  Champollion  who  dis- 
covered it  is  Borunda."1 

As  soon  as  Lord  Kingsborough's  appetite  for  this  study 
was  duly  whetted,  he  collected  all  the  particulars  of  the 
manuscripts  in  the  Bodleian,  Vatican  and  Escurial 
Libraries,  and  employed  an  artist,  one  Monsieur  Aglio,  for 
five  years  in  making  fac-similes.  These  were  collected 
and  printed,  with  transcripts  of  such  explanations  as 
existed,  supplemented  by  extracts  from  various  historians 
and  transcripts  of  inedited  works,  the  whole  being 
finally  issued  in  1831-1848.  A  dispute  having  arisen 
between  Lord  Kingsborough  and  his  paper  makers 
as  to  their  account,  he,  like  Mr.  Pickwick  in  the  matter  of 
the  Bardell  costs,  declined  to  pay,  and  was  cast  into  a 
debtor's  prison.  He  fared  worse  than  Mr.  Pickwick,  for, 
unhappily,  he  had  no  Sam  Weller  to  help  him  whilst  he 
was  in  prison.     He  contracted  a  prison  fever,  from  which 

1  Descripcion,  torn,  ii,  p.  33,  nota. 


MEXICAN    ANTIQUITIES. 


211 


he  died.  Had  he  lived  but  a  few  months  longer,  through 
the  death  of  his  father,  the  Earl  of  Kingston,  which 
occurred  about  that  time,  he  would  have  succeeded  to  the 
title  and  a  fortune  of  £40,000  a  year. 

The  work  concludes  with  the  "Kelaciones"  of  Don  Alva 
Ixtlilxochitl.  It  is  amusing  that  a  correspondent  of  the 
London  Notes  and  Queries  some  years  ago  wrote  to  ask  how 
one  was  to  learn  to  pronounce  the  long  and  almost  unread- 
able Mexican  names,  and  referred  particularly  to  Ixtlil- 
xochitl. ISTo  one  answered  the  query,  but  to-day  an 
inquirer  can  obtain  a  solution  by  consulting  some  such 
popular  and  easily-accessible  book  as  Thomas'  "Bio- 
graphical Dictionary."  There  it  is  said  the  name  is 
to  be  pronounced  Ikst-lel-no-chcetl.  It  has  been  well 
remarked  that  some  of  the  Aztec  emperors,  especially 
the  last  two,  lived  lives  equalling  in  interest  the  careers 
of  Alfred  the  Great,  the  Young  Chevalier  and  others, 
and  yet  their  names  are  even  unknown  to  most  Europeans. 
This  is  perhaps  attributable  to  the  impossible  names  they 
bore.  Mexieanese  was,  indeed,  a  wonderful  language. 
Amongst  other  trifles,  in  it  a  "priest"  was  elaborately 
designated  as  "notlazomahuizteopixoatatzin,"  or  "vener- 
"able-minister-of-God-that-I-love-a^-my-f  ather ;"  and  the 
word  "amatlacuilolitquitcatlaxlahuitli"  signified  "the-re- 
"ward-given-to-a-  messenger-  who-  bears-a-  hieroglyphic-ma  p- 
"conveying-intelligence." 

The  "Mendoza  Collection"  is  a  transcript  made  after  the 
conquest  of  Mexico,  and  is  divided  into  three  sections.  It 
relates  (plates  1-18)  to  the  civil  history  of  the  nation; 
(plates  19-57)  to  the    tributes    paid  by  conquered  cities; 


212  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

and  (plates  58-73)  to  the  domestic  economy  and  discipline 
of  the  Mexicans.  A  copy,  possibly  the  original,  was  seen 
by  the  Marquis  Spineto  in  the  Escnrial,  and  in  the  seventh 
lecture  of  his  "Elements  of  Hieroglyphics"  he  describes 
and  engraves  a  plate  (No.  62,  in  Kingsborough),  exhibiting 
the  marriage  ceremonies  of  the  Mexican  aborigines,  where 
the  bride  is  being  carried  to  the  groom  pick-a-back  by  a 
female  intermediary.  The  series  from  which  this  plate  is 
taken  shows  the  way  in  which,  year  by  year,  the  offspring 
of  the  marriage  was  educated  and  brought  up  to  the  doing 
of  "chores"  and  the  following  of  other  useful  pursuits, 
such  as  making  mats  and  fishing-nets,  rowing,  etc. 
Last  of  all,  footsteps  are  depicted  on  the  ground  between 
the  houses  of  neighboring  lads  and  lasses,  indicating  with 
what  pertinacity  the  youthful  Johns  or  Williams  walked 
backward  and  forward  from  their  homes  to  call  on  the 
maidens  of  their  choice,  resulting,  let  us  hope,  in  satis- 
factory and  happy  marriage  ceremonies. 

It  is  worthy  of  comment  that  the  copy  of  the  original 
map,  when  sent  to  Charles  V.,  was  captured  on  its  pas- 
sage by  a  French  cruiser  and  the  manuscript  went  to 
Paris,  where  Purchas  bought  it,  and  in  1625  engraved 
it  in  the  third  volume  «">f  his  "Pilgrims." 

This  "Mendoza  Collection"  was,  of  course,  much  used 
by  Prescott,  as  it  is  the  most  authentic  document  relating 
to  the  ancient  Mexicans,  and  a  large  number  of  the  plates 
are  dated.  The  epoch  of  the  Aztecs  in  the  Valley  of  Mexico 
began  with  our  year  1091.  How  ancient  the  inhabitants 
were  has  still  to  be  ascertained.  A  certain  Bishop  Nunez 
quotes  a  tradition  among  the  Indians  that  Yotan  was  a 


MEXICAN    ANTIQUITIES.  213 

Chiapaneze  who  was  present  at  the  erection  of  the  Tower 
of  Babel,  that  tower  being,  in  fact,  built  by  Votan's  own 

uncle.  On  the  dispersion  following  the  confusion  of 
tongues,  Vbtan  received  a  language  from  the  Almighty, 
with  the  added  command  to  populate  the  lands  of  Anahuac, 
or  the  Valley  of  Mexico.  This  he  did,  and  the  Bishop 
Nunez  affirms  that  "he  knew"  a  family  at  Teopixca,  of  the 
surname  of  Votan,  the  populator.  Further  "proof"  of 
descent  from  Votan  was  deemed  unnecessary.  The  nation's 
antiquity  seems  better  shown  in  the  facts  that  they  had  no 
knowledge  of  wax  or  oil  for  purposes  of  light;  did  not  use 
milk,  unless  they  took  it  from  buffaloes;  had  not  begun  to 
use  iron ;  and  had  no  domestic  animals,  so  that  when  Cortez 
appeared  with  a  horse  the  king  spoke  of  the  "kind  of  deer" 
on  which  the  Spaniard  rode. 

Almost  the  sole  object  of  Lord  Kingsbo rough  was  to 
demonstrate  that  the  Aztecs  were  descended  from  the 
Israelites,  probably  even  from  the  time  of  Xoah ;  and  his 
notes,  filling  a  volume  and  a  half,  are  elaborate  com- 
mentaries to  prove  that  hypothesis.  Unfortunately,  these 
notes  made  as  each  hieroglyphic  afforded  an  opportunity 
for  comment,  are  appended  without  order  or  arrangement, 
hence  masses  of  learning  and  strained  interpretations,  the 
result  of  years  of  labor,  are  practically  inaccessible..  In 
their  present  form  the  notes  are  as  bewildering  and  as 
unconnected  as  the  thousand  and  one  tales  of  Scheherezade 
in  the  "Arabian  Xights,"  and  not  so  entertaining.  The 
hieroglyphics  undoubtedly  show  remarkable  parallelisms, 
or  remnants  of  traditions,  wonderfully  akin  to  the  teach- 
ings of  the  Mosaic  and  Christian  Scriptures,  but  so  do 


214  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

the  traditions  of  nearly  every  heathen  religion.  It  is 
only  a  question  of  degree,  and  abstractly  they  afford  no 
actual  proof  of  having  come  from  direct  Mosaic  teaching. 

In  the  baptism  of  Aztec  infants  the  babes  were  sprinkled 
with  water  amid  prayers  by  the  midwife  for  the 
washing  away  of  their  original  sin,  and  the  words  of  the 
prayers  used  have  been  preserved.  Their  marriage  laws 
resembled  those  of  the  Hebrews,  refusing  polygamy  except 
to  kings  and  nobles,  punishing  adultery  by  stoning  to 
death  and  requiring  chastity  under  severe  penalties. 
Both  confession  to  a  priest  and  absolution  were  practiced. 
It  was  ordered  that  every  few  years  the  land  should  lie 
fallow.  Hebrew  Scripture  events  were  remembered  with 
variations.  The  fall  of  Eve  was  ascribed  to  the  eating  of 
a  banana,  not  an  apple.  The  deluge  is  recorded  in  plate 
7  of  the  Codex  Vaticanus,  and  Noah,  who  is  there  called 
Cox-Cox,  and  his  wife  are  shown  escaping  the  flood  in  a 
box,  they  being  the  only  two  persons  who  were  saved.  So, 
also,  the  story  of  the  fall  of  man  is  given,  and  his  subse- 
quent redemption  through  a  Son  born  of  a  Virgin  is  shown 
in  plates  7  and  20.  It  was  an  Indian  tradition  that  Saint 
Thomas,  the  Apostle,  personally  taught  in  Anahuac,  and 
the  promise  of  his  return,  like  that  of  Elijah  to  the  Jews, 
is  delineated  in  certain  plates,  as  explained  by  Lord  Kings- 
borough  in  the  sixth  volume. 

Having  regard  to  the  similarity  between  Hebrew  lore 
and  Aztec  traditions,  the  remarkable  "repetition,"  almost 
complete,  of  the  life  of  David  in  the  life  of  the  Mexican 
King  Nezahualcoyotl  (which  means  the  hungry  fox), 
should  be  mentioned.  In  youth  Nezahualcoyotl  was  pur- 
sued over  mountains  and  into  caves  like  a  partridge  by  a 


MEXICAN    ANTIQUITIES.  215 

second  Saul,  who  feared  him  as  a  successor  to  the  throne, 
but  the  young  prince  was  beloved  by  his  peasant  subjects 
and  always  escaped,  as  David  did  by  the  aid  of  Jonathan 
and  other  sympathizers.  Finally  he  came  to  the  throne, 
and  fell  madly  in  love  with  the  promised  bride  of  one  of 
his  old  generals.  The  general  was  forthwith  dispatched 
by  the  King  to  a  war  and  put,  like  Uriah,  in  front  of  the 
battle,  where  he  was  killed,  after  which  the  bride,  like 
Bathsheba,  became  the  wife  of  Xazahualcoyotl.  This 
King  was  the  chief  singer  of  his  nation,  wrote  many  poems, 
some  of  which  have  been  preserved  and  took  charge  of 
the  music  of  the  temple.  He  built  a  great  temple  "to 
"the  Unknown  God,"  and  had  an  only  son  by  his  wife. 
She  was  a  long  time  barren  and  he  at  last,  almost  in 
despair,  went  into  a  retreat,  where  he  fasted  forty  days, 
praying  for  a  child ;  and  at  the  end  of  the  fast  was  favored 
with  a  vision  promising  that  the  event  should  be  as  he 
desired.  The  child  was  born  and  when  eight  years  old 
the  King,  as  he  felt  death  approach,  appointed  him  his 
successor  and  threw  the  royal  mantle  upon  him.  The  child 
was  named  JSTezahualpilli,  that  is,  "the  prince  for  whom 
"one  has  fasted,"  and  he  proved  himself  a  second  Brutus. 
His  eldest  son  and  heir  entered  into  an  amorous  poetical 
correspondence  with  "the  Lady  Tula,"  one  of  his  father's 
concubines,  and  Xczahualpilli  had  him  publicly  executed, 
his  house  built  up  so  that  it  could  never  be  entered,  and 
the  poor  Lady  Tula  strangled  and  burned  to  ashes.1 

The  discovery  of  crosses  on  Aztec  altars  has  been  much 
discussed  by  snch  men  as  J.  L.  Stephens  in  his  "Travels 

1  For  fuller  history  of  these  two  kings  see  Preseott's  "Conquest  of 
Mexico,"  Book  I.  chap.  vi. 


216  HITHER    AND    THITHEK. 

"in  Central  America,  Chiapas  and  Yucatan ;"  1  and  "Inci- 
dents of  travel  in  Yucatan,"  2  also  by  Baring-Gould  in 
his  "Curious  Myths  of  the  Middle  Ages."  3  A  plate  of 
an  enormous  cross  ou  an  altar,  with  two  figures,  one  on 
each  side,  one  of  whom  is  holding  an  infant  bending 
toward  the  cross,  has  been  copied  by  Lord  Kingsborough. 
The  anonymous  author  of  "Communications  with  the 
"Unseen  World"  records  that  a  tradition  existed  among 
the  Indians  that  when  the  sign  of  the  cross  should  be  vic- 
torious, the  old  religion  would  disappear,  as  was  fulfilled 
when  the  Spanish  conquest  led  to  the  establishment  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  religion  throughout  the  country.  The 
Mexican  aborigines'  knowledge  of  astronomy  was  very 
extraordinary,  and  their  reckoning  of  time  was  almost 
perfect,  a  difference  of  only  a  few  hours  in  five  centuries 
having  been  detected  in  their  calendar.  Lord  Kings- 
borough,  and  Dupaix,  in  his  "Monumens,"  which  were 
originally  prepared  by  order  of  the  King  of  Spain, 
both  state  that  the  Mexicans  knew  the  use  of  the  telescope.4 
It  is  indisputable,  from  plate  22  of  the  Codex  Telleriano- 
Remensis,  that  they  calculated  eclipses ;  and  Laplace  com- 
ments on  their  great  knowledge  of  this  study  in  the  fifth 
book  of  his  great  work. 

The  critical  value  of  this  monumental  work  has  been 
seriously  disputed.  More  recent  fac-similes  of  the  work 
have  raised  the  question  whether  Mons.  Aglio  did  the  best 

■N.  Y.    2  volumes,  1841. 
2N.  Y.     1843. 

3  Curious  Myths  of  the  Middle  Ages :    The  Legend  of  the  Cross. 
4Prescott  in  a  note  dissents  from  this  opinion  (Conquest  of  Mexico, 
Book  I,  chap.  iv). 


MEXICAN    ANTIQUITIES.  217 

that,  could  have  been  done  in  his  part  of  the  work,  and  it  is 
quite  certain  that  Lord  Kingsborough,  in  his  five  volumes 
of  text,  might  have  done  a  great  deal  better  than  he  did. 

During  the  past  few  years  the  Due  de  Loubat  has  been 
issuing  a  series  of  fac-similes  of  Mexican  manuscripts, 
including  one  or  two  of  those  comprised  in  the  great  work 
of  Lord  Kingsborough.  These  are  accompanied  by 
elaborate  and  carefully-written  commentaries,  or  notes, 
and  all  persons  interested  in  this  subject  owe  a  very  large 
debt  of  gratitude  to  the  Duke  for  what  he  has  done  and  is 
doing.  He  has  kindly  presented  copies  of  some  of  these 
to  The  Free  Library  of  Philadelphia,  and  it  is  hoped  that 
gradually  a  complete  set  of  what  he  has  issued  will  be 
included  among  the  possessions  of  the  Library. 


The  Nuttall  Codex. 


The  Nuttall  Codex. 


STUDENTS  are  much  indebted  to  the  Curator  and 
other  authorities  of  the  Museum  of  Archeology  in 
Harvard  University,  for  the  issue  in  fac-simile  of 
the  "Nuttall  Codex"1  from  the  original  Mexican  picture 
history,  now  the  property  of  Lord  Zouche,  of  England. 
It  at  one  time  belonged  to  the  Library  of  San  Marco.  The 
name  has  been  given  to  this  codex  as  an  acknowledgment 
of  Mrs.  Zelia  NuttalFs  attainments  in  the  difficult  study 
of  Mexican  archaeology. 

The  fac-simile  is  of  the  exact  dimensions  of  the  original, 
which  is  painted  on  prepared  deer  skin,  strips  of  which 
are  glued  together  at  intervals  and  form  a  long  folded 
band.  The  codex  is  painted  on  both  sides  with  signs  in 
reverse  positions.  Counting  both  sides,  it  practically 
makes  a  series  of  eighty-four  pages  of  brilliantly-colored 
pictographs,  measuring  about  10  by  Ti/o  inches  each. 
Among  the  principal  chiefs  whose  deeds  are  portrayed 

1  Codex  Nuttall :  facsimile  of  an  Ancient  Mexican  Codex  belonging 
to  Lord  Zouche  .  .  .  with  an  introduction  by  Zelia  Nuttall. 
Peabody  Museum  of  American  Archaeology  and  Ethnology,  Harvard 
University;  Cambridge,  Mass.,  1902. 


222  HITHER    AND    THITHEK. 

are  two  known  as  Eight-Deer  and  Twelve-Ollin.  It  has 
been  remarked  that  while  the  history  and  deeds  of  these 
chieftains  are  given  in  considerable  detail,  yet  the  codex 
does  not  contain  what  might  be  termed  a  consecutive  written 
text,  but  "merely  consists  of  a  pictorial  representation  of 
"events,  accompanied  by  such  hieroglyphic  names  as  were 
"necessary  in  order  to  preserve  them  exactly  and  fix  them 
"in  the  memories  of  the  native  bards,  who  would  con- 
stantly derive  an  inspiration  from  the  painted  pages." 

Mrs.  ISTuttall  has  accompanied  the  codex  with  an  intro- 
duction of  thirty-five  pages,  giving  in  detail  her  first  im- 
pressions of  this  remarkable  discovery.  Whilst,  of  course, 
it  is  a  fact  that  we  know  but  little  of  the  history  and 
literature  of  ancient  Mexico,  and  of  the  names  of  its 
national  heroes ;  this  volume  supplies  us  "with  a  wealth  of 
"fresh  knowledge,  especially  concerning  the  dress,  cere- 
"monial  observances  and  the  position  of  women." 

It  has  not  been  possible  to  positively  identify  Eight- 
Deer  and  the  other  heroes  whose  exploits  are  commemo- 
rated in  this  codex,  nor  to  precisely  localize  the  events 
which  are  pictured  therein.  But  as  the  dates  of  many  of 
the  years  are  given  and  can  be  read,  as  increased  knowledge 
of  the  period  from  1470  to  1520  is  acquired,  it  is  possible 
that  the  identification  of  the  heroes  will  be  made  certain. 
From  many  of  the  pages — c.  g.,  page  47 — it  is  apparent, 
from  traces  of  effaced  hieroglyphs,  that  the  artist  first 
sketched  the  scene  he  desired  to  depict  and  then  finished 
it  in  the  brilliant  colors.  In  some  cases  he  seems  to  have 
designed  to  put  a  particular  scene  in  one  picture  and  then 
altered  his  mind,  probably  discovering  that  he  had  made 


THE    NUTTALL    CODEX.  UJO 

an  error.  At  all  events  he  frequently  depicted  some  other 
scene. 

In  the  "Antiquities  of  Mexico,"1  published  by  Lord 
Kingsborough,  plates  58  to  62  of  the  "Mendoza  Collec- 
tion," preserved  in  the  Selden  collection  of  manuscripts  in 
the  Bodleian  Library  at  Oxford,  interesting  pictorial  de- 
scriptions arc  given  of  the  rites,  ceremonies  and  educational 
methods  connected  with  the  birth  and  bringing  up  of  native 
children  from  the  cradle  to  their  marriage.  Similar  cere- 
monies are  shown  in  the  Xuttall  codex,  and  on  page  19  is 
exhibited  much  of  the  ceremonial  of  the  lord  Twelve-Wind 
and  the  lady  Three-Flint.  The  actual  physical  ceremonial 
of  kneeling  under  an  arch  whilst  streams  of  water  were 
poured  upon  them  from  above  by  priestesses,  holding 
painted  bowls,  was  probably  not  strikingly  pleasing  to  the 
persons  so  honored. 

On  page  52  the  great  hero  Eight-Deer  is  shown  divested 
of  military  insignia,  undergoing  the  rite  of  having  his 
nose  pierced  by  a  priest,  in  order  to  enable  him  to  assume 
the  "nose-turquoise,"  the  mark  of  chieftainship,  which  he 
is  shown  wearing  in  all  subsequent  pictures. 

Mrs.  Wuttall  has  promised  to  state  in  much  more  detail, 
in  a  later  publication,  the  result  of  her  study  of  this  and 
other  codices. 

It  was  found  that  photography  could  not  be  utilized  in 
this  reproduction,  and  the  entire  codex  had  to  be  traced 
by  the  hand  of  an  artist.  Mrs.  Xuttall  says  that  his  "ac- 
"curate  and  admirable  drawing  is  unsurpassed." 

The  manuscript  was  "lost  to  view"  for  a  long  number 

1  See  article  in  this  volume  entitled  "Mexican  Antiquities." 


224:  HITHER   AND    THITHER. 

of  years,  and  during  a  third  of  a  century  it  remained 
undisturbed  in  the  library  of  the  Honorable  Robert 
Curzon,  and  not  even  a  trace  of  its  existence  reached  the 
outer  world.  In  June,  1898,  it  was  entrusted  to  the 
custody  of  Sir  Edward  Maunde  Thompson,  of  the  British 
Museum,  so  that  Mrs.  Nuttall  might  proceed  with  the 
work  she  has  so  excellently  accomplished,  of  procuring  its 
reproduction  for  the  benefit  and  edification  of  students  at 
large. 


The 
Breviary  of  Cardinal  Grimani. 


15 


The  Breviary  of  Cardinal 
Grimani. 


SIJNTCE  the  early  part  of  the  fifteenth  century  the 
Breviary  of  Cardinal  Dominique  Grimani  has  been 
regarded  as  one  of  the  greatest  library  treasures  of 
the  world.  The  celebrated  Giacomo  Morelli,  who  was 
appointed  librarian  of  St.  Mark's  Library,  at  Venice,  in 
177S,  said  that,  of  its  kind  it  was  the  most  beautiful  work 
in  existence,  and  had  the  most  authentic  and  most  marvel- 
ous collection  of  miniatures  of  the  Flemish  school. 

Under  the  editorship  of  Dr.  S.  G.  De  Vries,  the  libra- 
rian of  the  University  Library  at  Leyden,  a  fac-simile 
reproduction  of  this  work  is  being  issued,1  and  the  first  of 
the  twelve  parts  in  which  it  is  to  be  published  was  received 
in  Philadelphia  early  in  January,  190L2  The  edition  is 
limited  to  six  hundred  copies,  and  a  vast  deal  of  newspaper 
and  magazine  writing  has  been  published  concerning  the 

1 II  Breviario  Grimani:  della  Biblioteca  di  S.  Marco  in  Venezia 
Riprodnzione  fotografica  completa  pubblicata  da  Statu  de  Vries,  Pre- 
fctto  della  Biblioteca  Universitaria  di  Leida.  Prefazione  del  Dr.  Sal 
Morpurgo.    Leida;  A.  W.  Sijthoff,  1904,  etc. 

2  The  second,  third  and  fourth  parts  have  since  been  received. 


228  HITHER    AND    THITHEK. 

authorship  of  the  miniatures  and  marginal  decorations. 
The  original  work  seems  to  have  been  undertaken  about 
1478,  and  Cardinal  Grimani  secured  possession  of  it  in 
1489,  so  that,  if  these  dates  are  correct,  it  was  ten  years  at 
least  in  execution.  It  appears  to  have  been  sold  to  the 
Cardinal  by  one  of  the  artists  for  five  hundred  ducats,  but 
now  is  much  more  nearly  worth,  according  to  the  popular 
phrase,  its  "weight  in  gold." 

The  original  work  was  largely  encouraged  by  Pope 
Sixtus  IV.,  but  he  did  not  live  to  see  the  work  completed, 
and  it  remained  for  some  time  in  the  hands  of  the  artists. 
For  a  long  time  it  was  preserved  in  the  library  of  the 
Basilica  of  St.  Mark's,  and,  for  greater  safety,  was  pre- 
served in  the  Treasury  of  that  "Church  of  Gold."  By  a 
decree  dated  1797,  the  librarian,  Morelli,  procured  the 
removal  of  the  Breviary  from  the  Treasury  of  St.  Mark's 
to  the  celebrated  library  of  San  Marco,  in  Venice.  The 
work  was  bound  by  Alexander  Victoria,  at  the  expense  of 
the  Venetian  Republic,  in  crimson  velvet,  the  upper  and 
lower  covers  being  emblazoned  with  profile  portraits  in 
silver-gilt  of  the  celebrated  Doge  Antonio  Grimani  and 
his  son,  the  Cardinal. 

The  volume  contains  eight  hundred  and  thirty-one  pages, 
measuring  between  11  and  12  inches  in  height  by  8  inches 
in  width.  Those  who  have  carefully  examined  the  original 
work  describe  the  parchment  as  unexcellable.  The  Breviary 
follows  the  form  of  that  book  of  offices  as  published  at 
Borne  in  1477.  It  has  no  title  page  or  frontispiece,  but 
commences  with  the  illuminated  calendar,  one  page  being 
devoted  to  each  month,  and  each  month  being  preceded  by 


BREVIARY  OF  CARDINAL  GEIMAHT.         229 

a  full-page  miniature  depicting  a  scene  .or  ceremony  appro- 
priate to  the  season.  These  and  some  one  hundred  or 
so  more  of  flic  miniatures  are  stated  to  be  the  workman- 
ship of  Memling,  but  those  who  are  not  willing  to  accept 
this  statement  can  refer  to  John  W.  Bradley's  "Dictionary 
"of  Miniaturists,"  in  which  it  is  asserted  that  there  is  no 
reliable  proof  of  Mending's  ever  having  worked  in  minia- 
tures. The  arguments  for  and  against  the  attribution  of 
these  glorious  illuminations  to  Memling  are,  however, 
given  in  detail  in  the  "Dictionary." 

More  light  may  probably  be  thrown  on  this  subject  when 
we  receive  the  introduction  to  this  fac-simile,  which  is 
promised  from  the  hands  of  the  present  Director  of  the 
Library  of  San  Marco,  Dr.  Sal  Morpurgo. 

In  addition  to  the  twenty-four  whole-page  miniatures  of 
the  calendar,  "all  by  the  hand  of  Memling,"  there  are 
sixty  more,  said  to  be  by  him,  depicting  scenes  from  the 
Bible  and  the  leading  incidents  of  the  principal  saints, 
with  eighteen  smaller  ones  connected  with  or  descriptive 
of  particular  services  contained  in  the  Breviary  and  placed 
at  the  head  of  each  office.  In  the  Breviary  the  miniature 
frequently  occupies  the  whole  page,  with  a  single  subject 
picture,  or  the  miniature  is  superimposed  upon  a  picture 
border,  which,  strengthened  by  rigid  architectural  lines 
and  tabernacle  work,  forms  a  rich  frame. 

Each  page  has  on  its  margin  a  perpendicular  band, 
variously  ornamented.  In  these  are  given  arabesques, 
beautiful  gildings,  decorations  in  silver,  pictures  of  flowers 
and  fruits  of  all  sorts,  with  a  multitude  of  quadrupeds, 
birds  and  fish,  and,  "in  a  word,  all  the  products  of  nature." 


230  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

Besides  these  are  given  country  scenes,  garden  views, 
cameos,  statues,  in  addition  to  capital  letters  which  deserve 
especial  notice. 

There  have  been  various  illustrated  books  published 
about  this  work,  notably  a  series  of  photographs  by  Mas- 
Latrie,  and  a  series  of  chromo-lithographs  by  dinner ;  but 
this  is  the  first  time  that  a  complete  reproduction  mainly 
in  the  original  colors,  has  been  attempted.  Official  per- 
mission in  regard  to  this  "authorized  publication"  was 
granted  to  A.  W.  SijthofT,  of  Leyden,  under  whose  auspices 
the  "Codices  Graxd  et  Latini"1  are  being  published.  The 
entire  work  will  consist  of  twelve  hundred  and  sixty-eight 
collotype  plates  and  three  hundred  colored  plates,  and  will 
take  a  very  important  place  among  the  magnificent  fac- 
simile reproductions  which  have  distinguished  the  last  few 
years. 

1 A  series  to  which  reference  has  previously  been  made.  The  fac- 
similes of  Terence  and  Tacitus  in  this  series  are  described  elsewhere 
in  this  volume. 


St.  Margaret's  Book  of  the  Gospels. 


St.  Margaret's  Book  of  the 
Gospels. 


IT  is  a  trite  remark  that  if  yon  cannot  see  the  original, 
the  next  best  thing  is  to  see  a  photographic  fac-simile. 
The  fac-simile  of  "The  Book  of  the  Gospels,"1  owned 
by  St.  Margaret,  Queen  of  Scotland,  who  died  in  1003,  has 
been  published,  and  a  copy  placed  in  the  Free  Library  of 
Philadelphia.  The  original  is  preserved  in  the  Bodleian 
Library,  at  Oxford ;  and  the  story  of  the  book  is  as  remark- 
able as  the  beauty  of  the  manuscript  itself.  The  original 
manuscript  consists  of  thirty-eight  leaves  of  vellum,  and 
measures  7  x  4%  inches.  It  has  four  full-page  illumina- 
tions, facing  respectively,  the  four  selections  from  each  of 
the  four  Gospels.  "The  four  Evangelists  are  drawn,"  says 
Professor  Westwood,  "with  much  spirit,  and  are  engaged 
"in  writing  or  holding  their  individual  Gospels  and  are 
"seated  o"n  stools  and  cushions,  each  having  a  plain,  circu- 
lar, golden  nimbus." 

The  fac-simile  is  edited  by  Father  W.  Forbes-Lei th,  who 

1  The   Gospel   Book   of   St.    Margaret,  edited  by  W.   Forbes-Leith  ; 
Edinburgh,  David  Douglas,  1896. 


234  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

gives  an  interesting  preface,  relating  the  history  of  the 
manuscript.  Nearly  eight  hundred,  years  ago  it  was  care- 
fully described  by  the  Confessor  of  the  Queen.  He  relates 
that  it  came  to  pass  that,  on  one  occasion,  as  the  person  who 
carried  it  to  her  was  crossing  a  ford  he  let  the  book,  which 
had  been  carelessly  folded  in  a  piece  of  cloth,  fall  into  the 
middle  of  the  river.  Unconscious  of  what  had  occurred, 
the  bearer  quietly  continued  his  journey;  but  when  he 
wished  to  produce  the  book,  suddenly  it  dawned  upon  him 
that  he  had  lost  it.  Long  was  it  sought,  but  nowhere  could 
it  be  found.  At  last,  however,  it  was  discovered  lying  open 
at  the  bottom  of  the  river,  from  which  it  was  miraculously 
recovered  without  injury. 

After  the  death  of  St.  Margaret  the  book  entirely  dis- 
appeared from  notice ;  and  it  was  only  eight  or  nine  years 
ago  that  a  little  octavo  volume  of  manuscript,  in  a  shabby 
brown  binding,  was  removed  from  a  small  parish  library  at 
Brent  Ely,  in  Suifolk,  England,  and  offered  for  sale  in  a 
London  auction  room.  The  Bodleian  Library  purchased 
this  manuscript  for  the  insignificant  sum  of  £6.  On 
examination  of  the  book,  for  the  purposes  of  cataloguing  it, 
it  was  noticed  that  there  was  a  poem  inscribed  on  a  fly 
leaf  in  front  of  the  manuscript ;  and  in  that  poem  refer- 
ence was  made  to  an  attendant  who,  while  carrying  it  "to 
"the  King  and  Queen,"  had  crossed  a  ford  and  let  it  fall 
into  a  stream,  where  it  lay  a  long  time — until,  in  fact,  a 
passing  knight  discovered  it. 

Mr.  Falconer  Madan,  who  catalogued  this  Bodleian 
treasure,  questioned,  "I  wonder  who  were  the  King  and 
"Queen  ?"    His  assistant,  Miss  Lucy  Hill,  daughter  of  tho 


saint  Margaret's  book  of  the  gospels.       235 

editor  of  BoswelFs  "Life  of  Johnson,"  remarked,  {CWhj, 

"there  was  a  similar  incident  recorded  in  the  life  of  St. 
"Margaret  of  Scotland!"  The  mystery  was  solved.  The 
identification  of  the  hook  seems  indisputable,  and  there 
is  little  doubt  that  the  hook,  after  all  these  centuries, 
has  hecn  recovered.  Were  it  now  to  get  into  the  market, 
it  would  take  many  multiples  of  £P>,  to  secure  this  magnifi- 
cent specimen  of  early  illuminated  writing. 


Visiting  Cards. 


Visiting  Cards. 


IT  is  almost  impossible  to  conceive  how  the  fashionable 
world  ever  did  without  those  social  conveniences, 
known  as  visiting  cards.  Yet  they  are  not  of  very 
ancient  date.  Apparently  they  were  adopted  in  English 
society,  before  they  Avere  generally  used  on  the  European 
continent.  Mrs.  St.  George,  whilst  she  was  staying  at 
Hanover,  records  in  her  journal  on  ^November  16,  1799, 
"at  six  Madame  de  Basche  called  to  take  me  to  pay  my 
"visits ;  we  only  dropped  tickets ;"  and  four  months  later 
records  that  at  Vienna  she  had  again  been  paying  formal 
visits,  but  that  "the  multiplicity  of  visits  was  not  confined 
"to  leaving  a  card,  as  in  London;  but  real,  substantial 
"bodily  visits." 

When  the  custom  first  began,  it  was  the  habit  to  write 
the  visitor's  name  on  the  back,  of  the  whole  or  a  part,  of  an 
old  used  playing  card.  Xot  only  were  the  names  of  callers 
written  on  them,  but  messages  and  inquiries  were  conveyed 
in  the  same  way.  They  were  also  so  used  for  announcing 
marriages,  ceremonies  and  programmes.  Invitations  and 
inquiries  had  previously  been  conveyed  by  servants,  and 


240  HITHER  AND   THITHEE. 

this  use  of  cards  was  introduced  to  guard  against  their 
mistakes. 

In  1851,  on  removing  a  marble  chimney  piece  in  the 
front  drawing  room  of  a  house  in  Dean  street,  Soho,  Lon- 
don, which  had  been  the  residence  of  Hogarth  or  his  father- 
in-law,  four  or  five  visiting  cards  were  found,  on  one  of 
which  was  written  the  name  of  Isaac  Newton. 

In  the  fourth  plate  of  Hogarth's  "Marriage  a  la  Mode" 
is  found  an  additional  proof  of  playing  cards  having  done 
duty  as  visiting  cards  and  cards  of  invitation,  during  the 
middle  of  the  eighteenth  century.  There  are  several  lying 
about  on  the  floor  in  the  right-hand  corner  of  the  picture. 
On  one  is  inscribed  "Count  Basset  begs  to  no  how  Lade 
"Squandor  sleapt  last  nite." 

An  old  King  of  Spades  still  exists,  on  the  back  of  which 
is  written :  "Return  thanks.  Mrs.  Frere  presents  her 
"compliments  to  Mr.  Selwyn  and  returns  him  thanks  for 
"his  kind  inquiries  after  her.    New  Bond  street." 

A  packet  of  these  visiting  and  invitation  cards  of  the  last 
century,  dating  between  1752  and  1764,  was  accidentally 
discovered  a  few  years  since;  showing  how  the  playing- 
cards  had  been  so  used  by  the  Northumberland  family. 
Many  of  these  were  printed  from  elegantly  engraved 
copper  plates,  on  the  back  of  old  playing  cards.  The  visit- 
ing cards  were  about  3  by  2  inches ;  and  the  names  of  the 
Earl  and  Countess  of  Northumberland  are  printed  on  the 
backs  of  a  half  of  the  Three  of  Clubs  and  of  the  Queen  of 
Diamonds,  respectively.  On  the  back  also  of  the  Eight  of 
Spades,  was  a  note  from  the  Earl.  The  invitations  to  card 
parties  were  similarly  printed  from  copper  plates,  but  were 


VISITING    CAKDS.  241 

large  enough  to  cover  the  whole  of  the  back  of  a  playing 
card.  Examples  of  these  exist  from  the  Countess  of 
Grafton,  as  well  as  Lady  Northumberland,  on  the  backs  of 
an  Ace  and  a  Ten  of  Hearts  and  a  Ten  of  Spades.  At  the 
bottom  of  one  is  added  "without  a  hoop  if  agreeable,"  indi- 
cating how  the  monstrous  hoops  of  those  days,  were 
regarded  as  nuisances,  interfering  with  the  free  approach 
to  the  card  table. 

The  custom  of  visiting  en  blanc,  as  it  was  called — 
that  is,  by  leaving  a  card — was  introduced  in  Paris,  about 
the  year  1770.  It  can  be  imagined  that  the  old  ladies  and 
gentlemen,  who  dearly  loved  to  show  their  costumes, 
regarded  this  fashion  as  fantastic ;  but  the  exigencies  of 
society  overcame  the  objection,  and  convenience  carried  the 
day. 

A  lady  of  rank,  who  sent  her  compliments  to  an  English 
parson  written  on  the  back  of  an  old  Ten  of  Hearts, 
received  by  way  of  answer,  the  following  poetical  retort : 

Your  compliments,  dear  lady,  pray  forbear, 
Old  English  services  are  more  sincere, 

You  send  ten  hearts — the  tithe  is  only  mine, 
Give  me  but  one  and  burn  the  other  nine. 

The  world-renowned  Canova  had  his  name  on  a  card,  on 
which  was  represented  a  block  of  marble,  rough  hewn  from 
the  quarry,  drawn  in  perspective,  and  inscribed  in  large 
Roman  capitals  A.  CAXOVA.  Miss  Berry  and  her  sister 
Agnes,  the  intimate  friends  and  correspondents  of  Horace 
Walpole,  used  one  whereon  were  portrayed  two  nymphs  in 
classical  drapery,  pointing  to  a  weed-grown  slab,  on  which 
is  engraved  "Miss  Berrys."     The  one  we  are  describing 

16 


242  HITHEE    AND    THITHER. 

looks  like  a  tombstone.  One  of  the  nymphs  leads  a  lamb  by 
a  ribbon,  to  typify  Miss  Agnes  Berry.  It  is  said  that  a 
worm  will  turn,  and  so  a  lamb  may  show  fight;  as  in  fact, 
did  these  ladies,  who  published  a  series  of  Walpole's  letters 
to  themselves  by  way  of  answer  to  Lord  Maeaulay's  severe 
sketch  of  Walpole,  published  in  the  Edinburgh  Review, 
which  the  Miss  Berrys  thought  gave  an  untrue  and  unfair 
view  of  the  character  of  their  friend  and  patron. 

The  cards,  however,  were  not  always  of  the  melancholy 
character  above  described,  but  were  often  made  objects  of 
artistic  beauty,  pleasant  to  the  eye  and  worthy  of  preserva- 
tion. The  greatest  artists  did  not  scruple  to  execute 
designs  for  such  cards,  and  a  few  by  Casanova  have  been 
preserved. 

Adam  Bartsch,  who  Avas  a  lover  of  the  canine  species, 
drew  a  picture  of  a  handsome  spaniel  sitting  on  his  hind 
legs  in  a  begging  posture,  holding  in  his  mouth  a  card, 
bearing  the  name  inscribed  on  it ;  and  a  second  in  which 
a  savage  dog  has  just  torn  a  roll  of  paper  with  the  date 
1795,  beneath  which  is  written,  "Adam  Bartsch  has  the 
"pleasure  of  presenting  his  compliments  and  good  wishes 
"for  the  New  Year." 

The  late  Emperor  Napoleon  III.,  had  in  his  possession 
a  Nine  of  Diamonds,  which  the  great  Napoleon  had  cov- 
ered with  English  phrases,  at  a  time  when  he  was  endeav- 
oring to  acquire  some  facility  in  that  language. 

It  is  noticeable  of  the  cards  .of  English  society  that  the 
landscapes,  which  Avere  a  favorite  conceit  for  such  cards, 
are  all  more  or  less  faithful.  Bath,  the  city  of  English 
elegance  of  the  period,  is  a  favorite  subject.     Sometimes 


VISITING    CAKDS.  243 

tlio  scene  selected  is  Milsoin  street,  well  known  in  the 
memoirs  of  the  gallants  of  that  day,  with  its  long  per- 
spective of  fashionable  houses.  Sometimes  the  North 
Parade  or  Queen's  Square,  is  so  faithfully  drawn,  that 
Sheridan  would  have  been  able  to  point  out  his  favorite 
residence,  or  Beau  Brummel  to  identify  himself  amongst 
those  depicted  as  parading  the  terrace. 

The  Italian  cards  are  of  a  very  different  style,  contain- 
ing drawings  of  the  antique,  reproducing  chefs  d'oeucres 
of  the  Greeks  and  Romans.  In  some  are  sacrifices  of 
sheep  or  oxen;  in  some  Psyche  before  Venus  and  her  son, 
seated  in  a  family  conclave. 

The  architect  Blondel  inscribed  his  name  above  the  cor- 
nice of  a  ruined  monument. 

The  Germans  engraved  sometimes,  the  bust  of  their 
favorite  hero  beside  their  names.  For  example,  the  Count 
of  Drakslaw  has  that  of  the  Archduke  Charles  defending 
the  approach  to  Vienna,  which  is  recognizable  by  the  spire 
of  its  beautiful  cathedral.  Another  card  represents  in  its 
left-hand  corner,  a  woman  sitting  with  three  children,  two 
at  her  knees  and  one  in  her  arms.  A  flight  of  quaintly- 
drawn  angels  bear  garlands  and  gifts  from  the  cloud  which 
is  drawn  overhead,  and  the  motto,  "Benediction  du  ciel," 
with  the  names,  "Les  deux  Comtesses  de  Windischgratz," 
appears  on  the  white  remainder  of  the  card. 

Old  and  soiled  packs  of  cards  have  been  utilized  for 
practical  'purposes.  Mr.  Chambers  vouches  for  the  two 
following  stories:1  Once  a  worthy  skipper,  worn  almost 
to  death  by  foul  weather  and  a  sick  crew,  bethought  him- 

1  "The  Book  of  Days." 


244  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

self  that  he  had  better  make  use  of  the  services  of  a  lot  of 
steerage  Irish  who  were  aboard.  They  cheerfully  agreed 
to  work  the  ship  in  the  absence  of  the  regular  crew  on  the 
sick  list,  but  knowing  nothing  of  the  ropes  were  useless, 
notwithstanding  their  desire  to  help. 

The  bright  thought  occurred  to  the  master  of  the  vessel 
to  fix  up  a  playing  card,  as  a  mark  or  tally,  at  each  of  the 
principal  ropes.  He  put  the  red  cards  in  the  fore  part  of 
the  ship  and  the  black  cards  aft ;  using  the  Hearts  and 
Clubs  on  the  starboard  and  Diamonds  and  Spades  on  the 
larboard.  So  when  the  order  went  to  haul  the  Ace  of 
Spades  or  Ten  of  Hearts  the  substitute  Jack  Tar  was  at  his 
post  in  a  twinkling,  and  no  further  mistakes  occurred. 
Many  a  sailor  has  been  longer  in  learning  his  duty  'fore  the 
mast,  than  these  merry,  honest  Irishmen  who  worked  "by 
"the  card." 

The  second  instance  of  a  good  use  of  an  old  pack  vouched 
for  by  Mr.  Chambers  as  a  curious,  but  undoubtedly  authen- 
tic historical  anecdote,  is  as  follows:  Toward  the  end  of  the 
reign  of  Queen  Mary  a  commission  was  granted  to  a  Dr. 
Cole  to  go  over  to  Ireland  and  commence  a  fiery  crusade 
against  the  Protestants  of  that  country.  On  reaching  Ches- 
ter, in  England,  on  his  way,  the  Doctor  was  waited  upon  by 
the  Mayor  of  the  city,  to  whom  lie  gleefully  showed  his 
commission,  exclaiming  with  premature  triumph,  "Here  is 
"what  shall  lash  the  heretics  of  Ireland."  Mrs.  Edmonds, 
the  landlady  of  the  Chester  Inn,  having  ;i  brother  in 
Dublin,  was  disturbed  by  overhearing  these  words,  so  when 
the  Doctor  courteously  attended  the  Mayor  down  si  airs,  she 
hastened  to  his  room,  opened  his  box,  took  out  the  commis- 


VISITING    CARDS.  245 

sion  and  put  a  pack  of  cards  in  its  place.  When  the  Doctor 
returned  to  his  apartment,  he  put  the  box  into  liis  port- 
manteau without  suspicion,  and  the  next  day  sailed  to 
Dublin.  On  his  arrival  he  waited  on  the  Lord  Lieutenant 
and  Privy  Council,  to  whom  he  made  a  speech  on  the  sub- 
ject of  his  commission,  and  then  presented  the  box  to  his 
Lordship.  But  ou  opening  it  there  appeared  only  a  pack 
of  cards,  with  the  Knave  of  Clubs  uppermost.  The  Doctor 
was  petrified,  and  assured  the  Council  that  he  had  had  a 
commission,  but  what  was  become  of  it  he  could  not  tell. 
The  Lord  Lieutenant  answered,  "Let  us  have  another  com- 
"mission,  and  in  the  meantime  we  can  shuffle  the  cards." 
Before  the  Doctor  could  get  his  commission  renewed  Queen 
Mary  died,  and  thus  the  persecution  was  prevented. 
Queen  Elizabeth  heard  of  the  story  and  settled  a  pension  of 
£40  per  annum  on  Mrs.  Edmonds,  for  having  saved  the 
Queen's  Protestant  subjects  in  Ireland. 


Horse-Shoes. 


Horse-Shoes. 


44  ~\  T"  ANITY  of  Vanities,  all  is  Vanity,"  is  an  ancient 
V  truism,  and  the  ingenious  minds  of  Nero  and 

his  wife  found  a  means  of  displaying  that  very 
common  foible  of  the  human  character  in  their  use  even  of 
such  unlikely  objects  as  horse-shoes.  We  are  told  by 
Suetonius  that  Nero's  mules  had  silver  shoes1  and,  accord- 
ing to  the  elder  Pliny,  Nero's  notorious  wife,  Poppaea,  out- 
Heroded  him  in  extravagance  and  caused  the  shoes  of  her 
delicate  beasts  to  be  made  of  gold.2  A  similar  piece  of 
folly  is  related  of  Boniface,  the  third  duke  of  Tuscany,  one 
of  the  richest  princes  of  his  time,  who  went  to  meet  Beatrix 
his  bride  (mother  of  the  well-known  Matilda),  about  1038, 
his  whole  train  so  magnificently  decorated  that  "his  horses 
"were  not  shod  with  iron,  but  with  silver."  lie  further 
insisted  that  even  the  nails  should  be  of  the  same  metal, 
and  that  when  any  of  them  dropped  out  they  should  belong 
to  those  .who  found  them.  Of  this  latter  arrangement 
there  is  no  record  of  any  complaint  having  been  made. 
This  anecdote  is  related  by  a  contemporary  writer,  but. 

'Lives  of  the  twelve  Caesars;  Nero,  XXX. 
*  Natural  History;  Book  XXXIII,  chap.  49. 


250  HITHER  AND  THITHER. 

being  told  in  verse,  we  may  believe  that  he  possibly 
indulged  in  poetical  license.  True  or  untrue,  it  is  a  useful 
piece  of  history,  as  it  proves  that  horse-shoes  were  fastened 
on  with  nails  at  the  time  of  the  author,  as  otherwise  he 
could  not  have  mentioned  the  fact. 

The  question  when  iron  shoes  were  first  introduced,  and 
how  the  shoes  were  originally  fastened  on  to  the  horses,  is 
never  likely  to  be  satisfactorily  answered.  Mules  and 
camels  are  the  beasts  of  burden  first  mentioned  as  having 
shoes,  and  as  mules,  camels  and  asses  were  used  more 
commonly  than  horses  in  earlier  times,  this  is  to  be 
expected.  They  were  more  tractable,  and  the  shoeing  was 
no  doubt  more  easily  performed  on  them.  Some  lay  great 
stress  on  the  fact  that  Homer  speaks  of  the  "brazen-footed 
"horse,"  but  this  need  not  be  regarded  as  conclusive  evi- 
dence that  horses  wore  metal  shoes  unless  we  can  also  be 
sure  that  towers,  men  and  women  have  been  clad  in  brass 
because  we  find  frequent  mention  in  books  of  brazen 
towers,  brazen  lungs  and  brazen  faces. 

rt  may  fairly  be  concluded  that  the  Canaanites  did  not) 
shoe  their  horses,  from  the  assertion  that  "then  were  the 
uhorse-hoofs  broken  by  the  means  of  the  prancings,  the 
"prancings  of  their  mighty  ones,"1  for  had  their  hoofs  been 
shod  either  with  iron  or  brass  they  would  not  have  been 
broken  by  the  prancing. 

( 'asaubon  tells  us  that  the  practice  of  shoeing  was  not 

known    anciently,    and    in    the    works    of    Zenophon    and 

Vegetius,  as  well  as  other  authors,  methods  are  described 

for  hardening  the  hoofs,  but  no  clear  intimation  is  any- 

1  Judges  v,  22. 


HORSE-SHOES.  251 

whore  given  that  either  the  Crocks  or  the  Romans  made  a 

practice  of  shoeing  their  horses  to  protect  the  hoofs  from 
wear.  The  earliest  metal  shoes  of  which  we  find  mention 
arc  described  as  being  variously  of  copper,  iron,  silver  and 
gold ;  but  before  these  came  into  use  it  would  seem  that 
camels  and  oxen,  in  times  of  war  and  during  long  journeys, 
were  provided  with  leather  coverings  or  bandages  for  the 
feet,  the  latter  being  sometimes  plaited  from  the  fibres  of 
plants.  Unlike  the  rims  of  metal  popularly  known  now- 
adays as  horse-shoes,  they  were  actual  shoes  which  tied 
over  the  hoof;  for  Aristotle  gives  them  the  same  name 
as  was  then  given  to  the  shoes,  socks  or  soles  of  the  com- 
mon people,  which  were  made  of  strong  ox  leather.  They 
were  probably  made  of  undressed  leather.  Horses  in 
countries  like  Egypt,  where  the  land  is  soft,  naturally 
did  not  need  shoes,  though  they  have  become  indispensable 
in  the  modern  days  of  macadamized  public  roads.  At  the 
beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century  horse-shoes  were  still 
unknown  in  Ethiopia  and  Tartary;  and  in  Japan,  in  the 
exceptional  instances  when  horses  were  shod  at  all,  they 
wore  shoes  such  as  those  of  the  ancients. 

When  first  brought  into  use,  they  were  almost  certainly 
not  fastened  with  nails,  for  Catullus  speaks  of  the  iron 
shoes  of  his  time  as  easily  drawn  off ;  expressing  a  desire 
to  throw  a  heavy  townsman  of  his  headlong  off  a  bridge 
into  the  river,  that  he  might,  if  possible,  shake  off  his 
lethargy  and  leave  his  stupidity  in  the  mud,  "as  the  mule 
"leaves  her  iron  shoe  in  the  stiff  slough.1     They  were  only 

1  In  the  Lamb  and  Grainger  metrical  collection,  XVII.  (To  a  town, 
on  a  stupid  husband.    Lamb). 


252  HITHER    AND    THITHEE. 

put  on  in  miry  places,  or  when  the  safety  or  pomp  of  the 
cattle  required  it.  Even  the  mighty  Vespasian  once  had 
to  pull  up  in  the  middle  of  his  royal  progress  and  wait 
whilst  the  coachman  put  on  the  shoes  of  his  mules.  Their 
irregular  and  infrequent  use  in  early  times  is  confirmed 
by  the  fact  that  Mithridates,  when  besieging  the  town  of 
Cyzicus  in  his  first  war  against  the  Romans,  was  obliged 
to  send  away  his  whole  cavalry  to  Bithynia  because  the 
horses'  hoofs  were  worn  down  and  their  feet  disordered,  an 
evil  to  which  the  horses  "were  often  liable,"  which  would 
not  have  been  the  case  had  they  been  shod  with  iron. 

The  ancients  appear  at  first  to  have  plated  them  round 
the  bottom  of  their  feet,  and  to  have  drawn  them  over  the 
hoofs,  as  the  plated  shoes,  when  they  covered  the  hoofs, 
made  a  more  glittering  appearance,  especially  those  of 
silver  or  gold,  than  if  nailed  at  the  bottom  of  their  feet 
only.  One  ancient  writer  asserts  that  the  horse-shoes  of 
Nero  and  his  wife  had  the  upper  part  only  formed  of  these 
noble  metals. 

The  Russians  in  Kamchatka  cover  the  feet  of  their 
dogs  which  draw  their  sledges  on  the  ice,  binding  the 
leather  or  other  covering  round  their  feet  so  ingeniously 
that  the  claws  of  the  animals  project  through  small  holes. 

Apparently  it  would  seem  that  the  Thessalonians  were 
the  first  who  protected  their  horses'  hoofs  with  shoes  of 
iron. 

When  the  modern  horse-shoes  were  first  invented,  they 
were  known  by  a  Greek  name,  identifying  them  with  their 
moon  shape,  and  the  earliest  use  of  this  name  which  has 
been  discovered,  is  in  the  works  of  the  Emperor  Leo,  the 


HORSE-SHOES.  L' .">.'> 

philosopher,  in  tho  ninth  century.  It  is  expressly  stated 
that  these  were  made  of  iron,  and  that  they  were  fastened 
with  nails.  The  most  ancient  nails  hitherto  found  by 
antiquaries  are  those  once  belonging  to  a  horse  buried  with 
Childeric  I.,  who  died  in  481,  and  whose  shoe  was  fastened 
with  nine  nails.  The  oldest  iron  shoe,  or  part  of  one  that 
has  been  found  is  a  portion  of  one  belonging  to  Charle- 
magne's horse,  in  which  are  holes  for  the  nails. 

Horse-shoes  are  supposed  to  have  been  introduced  into 
England  by  William,  the  Conqueror.  That  king  gave  the 
city  of  Northampton,  then  valued  at  £40  per  annum,  as  a 
fief  to  a  certain  person  in  consideration  of  his  providing 
"shoes  for  his  horses,"  and  it  is  believed  that  Henry  de 
Ferres,  or  de  Ferrers,  who  came  over  with  William,  and 
whose  descendants  still  bear  in  their  arms  six  horse-shoes, 
received  that  surname  because  he  was  entrusted  with  the 
inspection  of  farriers.  A  similar  transaction  was 
arranged  with  one  Henry  de  Averying,  who  held  the 
Manor  of  Morton,  in  the  county  of  Essex,  of  the  King  in 
chief,  by  service  of  a  man  and  a  horse  worth  ten  shillings 
and  four  horse-shoes  for  the  then  pending  expedition 
against  Wales.  Perhaps,  out  of  some  similar  transaction 
arose  a  singular  and  rather  tyrannical  custom  which  long 
prevailed  at  Oakham,  in  Rutlandshire,  the  seat  of  Earl 
Ferrers,  one  of  the  peers  of  England.  If  any  baron  of 
the  English  realm  passed  through  the  place  he  forfeited 
one  of  his  horse's  shoes  unless  he  chose  to  redeem  it  by  a 
line:  the  forfeited  shoe,  or  if  the  tine  was  paid  the  one 
made  in  its  place,  was  fixed  upon  the  castle  gates,  inscribed 
with  his  name,  in  consequence  of  which  custom  the  castle 


254  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

gates  became  in  time  covered  with  numerous  shoes,  some 
of  unusual  size  and  some  gilt. 

In  course  of  time  certain  of  the  properties  situated  in 
the  city  of  London,  which  had  been  originally  held  by 
private  persons  in  consideration  of  the  nominal  payment 
of  a  certain  number  of  horse-shoes  and  nails,  a  large  sum 
having  been  paid  down  for  the  king's  use  at  the  time  of 
the  original  grant,  became  the  property  of  the  corporation 
of  London,  and  to  this  day,  when  the  Lord  Mayor  is  for- 
mally presented  in  great  state,  on  November  9th,  to  the 
Barons  (or  Judges)  of  the  Court  of  Exchequer,  who  on 
behalf  of  the  King  express  the  approval  of  His  Majesty  to 
the  election  of  the  Lord  Mayor,  a  certain  number  of  nails 
are  still  counted  out  and  handed  to  the  officers  of  that  court 
as  payment  of  the  duty  and  in  assertion  of  the  right  of  the 
corporation  to  the  property  in  perpetuity.  Two  such 
instances  are  mentioned  in  the  Great  Rolls  of  19  Henry 
III.,  and  in  the  Rolls  of  the  Exchequer  of  the  first  year  of 
the  reign  of  Edward  I.  One  is  that  of  Walter  le  Brim 
(marshal  or  farrier)  of  the  Strand,  who  received  a  grant 
of  a  certain  place  in  the  parish  of  St.  Clement's,  to  build  a 
forge  there,  in  consideration  of  six  horse-shoes  annually, 
and  the  other  that,  of  Walter  Mareschal,  or  the  farrier  at  the 
Howe  Cross,  who  was  bound  to  render  annually  forever 
six  shoes  with  their  nails  as  a  reserved  rent  for  a  certain 
forge  opposite  to  the  Howe  Cross.  The  former  rent  has 
therefore  been  paid  over  six  hundred  and  fifty  and  the 
latter  for  nearly  six  hundred  and  twenty  years.  The  cor- 
poration has  been  very  careful  to  keep  up  the  annual  pay- 
ment of  this  duty  ever  since  the  property  was  acquired. 


HOUSE-SHOES.  255 

Shakespeare  puts  into  the  mouth  of  King  Lear,  when 
the  poor  old  man  is  babbling  to  Gloucester,  the  saying: 

"It  were  a  delicate  stratagem  to  shoe 

"A  troop  of  horse  with  felt.     I'll  put  't  in  proof." 

This  "stratagem"  had  actually  been  practiced  some  fifty 
years  before  the  great  poet  was  born.  Lord  Herbert,  in 
his  life  of  King  Henry  VIII.,  writes:  "And  now,  having 
"feasted  the  ladies  right  royally  for  divers  days,  Henry 
"departed  on  13  Oct.  1513,  from  Tournay  to  Lisle,  whither 
"he  was  invited  by  the  Lady  Margaret,  who  caused  there 
"a  juste  to  be  held  in  an  extraordinary  manner — the  place 
"being  a  fore-room  raised  high  from  the  ground  by  many 
"steps,  and  paved  with  black  square  stones,  like  marble; 
"while  the  horses,  to  prevent  sliding,  were  shod  with  felt 
"or  flocks:  after  which  the  ladies  danced  all  night." 

In  connection  with  horse-shoes  exists  the  old  popular 
tradition  of  its  being  an  omen  of  good  luck  "if  drinke  be 
"spilled  upon  a  man  or  if  he  find  old  iron,"  so  that  Dr. 
Home,  in  his  "Dsemonologie,  or  the  Character  of  the  Cry- 
"ing  Evils  of  the  Present  Time"  (1650),  tells  us,  "How 
"frequent  it  is  with  people  (especially  of  the  more  ignorant 
"sort,  which  makes  the  things  more  suspected)  to  think 
"and  say,  if  they  finde  some  pieces  of  iron,  it  is  prediction 
"of  good  lucke  to  the  finders !  if  they  find  a  piece  of  silver, 
"it  is  a  foretoken  of  ill  lucke  to  them."  And  among  the 
good  wishes  enumerated  by  Holyday  in  his  comedy  of  the 
"Marriage  of  the  Arts"  is  included  "That  the  horse-shoes 
"may  never  be  pul'd  from  your  threshold."  We  can  well 
imagine  how,  whilst  outwardly  pretending  to  despise  the 


256  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

tradition,  an  old  cynic  would  look  around  in  hopes  that 
nobody  saw  him,  and  carefully  pick  up  the  shoe  against 
which  he  stumbled ;  and  how  he  would  inwardly  chuckle 
over  his  hoped  for  good  luck,  even  whilst  he  had  the  hardi- 
hood to  write  in  his  "Reflections,"  published  in  1665, 
''The  common  people  of  this  country  have  a  tradi- 
tion that  'tis  a  lucky  thing  to  find  a  horse-shoe,  and, 
"though  'twas  to  make  myself  merry  with  this  fond  con- 
ceit of  the  superstitious  vulgar,  I  stooped  to  pick  it  up." 
Why,  of  course,  he  went  in  to  win  the  luck,  in  the  same 
spirit  that  country  maidens,  if  nobody  is  looking,  courtesy 
to  the  new  moon,  or  bemoan  their  ill  luck  if  they  are  so 
unfortunate  as  to  first  see  the  new  moon  through  glass. 

Another  tradition  is  that  horse-shoes  act  as  a  protection 
against  evil  spirits  and  witches  by  preventing  them  from 
crossing  the  threshold  over  which  they  are  nailed.  This 
practice  resembles  a  custom  of  driving  nails  into  the  walls 
of  cottages,  which  prevailed  among  the  Romans,  and  which 
was  believed  to  serve  as  protection  against  the  plague.  The 
poet  Gay  writes  of  the  custom  in  his  "Fable"  of  "The 
"Old  Woman  and  her  Cats" : 

.    .    .  "Crowds  of  boys 
"Worry  me   with   eternal  noise; 
"Straws  laid  across  my  pace  retard, 
"The  horseshoe's  nail'd  (each  threshold's  guard) 
"The  stunted  broom  the  wenches  hide, 
"For  fear  that  I  should  up  and  ride; 
"They  stick  witli  pins  my  bleeding  seat, 
"And  bid  me  shew  my  secret  teat." 

It  lias  been  suggested  that  the  custom  may  have  grown 
nut  of  the  still  earlier  practice  of  having  sacred  paintings 


HORSE-SHOES.  257 

on  the  exteriors  of  houses,  as  is  still  so  common  in  the 
rural  parts  of  Germany  and  Bavaria,  especially  in  the 
Dolomite  region.  Such  paintings  may  have  in  time 
become  more  and  more  nearly  obliterated  by  the  weather, 
whilst  the  metal  or  gilded  menisci  over  the  heads  of  the 
Virgin  or  Saints  lasted  longer,  becoming  prominent  objects 
which  could  not  escape  attention,  hence,  the  respect 
originally  given  to  a  whole  picture  may  have  been  con- 
tinued to  its  meniscus,  and  from  that  to  the  horse-shoe, 
which,  after  a  time,  was  put  up  in  substitution  for  the  last 
fragment  of  the  picture.  Butler,  in  his  "Hudibras,"  says 
of  his  Conjuror  that  he  could 

"Chase  evil  spirits  away  by  dint 
"Of  sickle,  horseshoe,  hollow  flint." 

A  writer  in  the  latter  half  of  the  seventeenth  century 
mentions  that  most  of  the  houses  at  the  west  end  of  London 
were  thus  protected  to  hinder  the  power  of  witches,  who 
would  otherwise  enter  them.  On  April  26,  1813,  another 
writer  counted  no  less  than  seventeen  horse-shoes  in  one 
street  in  London,  known  as  Monmouth  street,  though 
by  1841  that  number  had  been  reduced  to  five  or  six.1 
Xor  was  this  superstition  confined  wholly  to  the  lower 
classes,  for  at  Holly  Lodge  the  residence  of  the  Baroness 
Burdett-Coutts  and  Mr.  Coutts,  they,  being  superstitious, 
caused  a  rusty,  old,  broken  horse-shoe  to  be  fastened  on  the 
highest  marble  step  by  which  the  house  is  entered  from 
the  lawn.  These  preventives  against  witches  even  became 
rivals  of  the  Stoup  of  Holy  Water  in  the  porches  of 
1  Brand's  Popular  Antiquities  of  Great  Britain. 
17 


258  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

churches,  tiles  having  been  found  under  the  porch  of  Stan- 
infield  Church  and  many  other  places  with  horse-shoes 
upon  them,  put  there  with  that  object. 

A  story  was  given  in  the  newspapers  some  years  since 
of  a  carpenter  residing  at  Ely  who,  on  being  taken  ill, 
imagined  that  a  woman  named  Gotobed,  whom  he  had 
ejected  from  one  of  his  houses,  had  bewitched  him.  Some 
matrons  who  were  assembled  in  the  sick  man's  chamber 
agreed  that  the  only  way  to  protect  him  from  the  sorceries 
of  the  witch  was  to  send  for  the  blacksmith  and  have  three 
horse-shoes  nailed  to  the  door.  This  was  done,  much  to 
the  anger  of  the  supposed  witch,  who  at  first  complained 
to  the  Dean  of  the  Cathedral,  but  was  laughed  at  by  his 
Reverence.  She  then  rushed  in  wrath  to  the  sick  man's 
room,  and,  miraculous  to  tell,  passed  the  Rubicon  notwith- 
standing the  horse-shoes.  This  wonder  ceased  when  it  was 
discovered  that,  in  order  to  make  the  most  of  the  job,  the 
faithless  Vulcan  had  used  a  pair  of  donkey's  shoes. 

Horse-shoes  were  always  made  by  hand  until  1835, 
when  a  machine  was  invented  by  which  as  many  as  fifty  or 
sixty  shoes  can  be  made  per  minute. 


Mourning. 


Mourning. 


AS  statisticians  state  that  with  the  lapse  of  every 
second  of  time  one  person  dies,1  it  is  not  surprising 
that  an  immense  amount  of  curious  matter  is 
found  scattered  up  and  down  in  books,  concerning  the  dif- 
ferent ways,  in  which  among  various  peoples  the  family 
and  friends  of  the  dead  have  outwardly  expressed  their 
grief.  Nearly  every  one  must,  many  times  in  the  course 
of  an  ordinary  lifetime,  have  to  go  into  mourning,  and  a 
large  and  interesting  volume  might  be  written  on  the  sub- 
ject— the  dress  adopted,  the  period  of  observance,  personal 
behaviour,  etc.,  though  the  gist  of  the  subject  can  be  com- 
pressed into  a  short  space. 

The  customs  of  the  Jews  are  probably  more  fully  known 
than  those  of  any  other  nationality.  They  generally 
mourned  the  dead  seven  days,  though  the  period  Avas  ex- 
tended, as  in  the  cases  of  Aaron  and  Moses,  to  thirty  days. 
During  this  period  the  people  indulged  in  loud  and  violent 
weeping,  rending  the  clothes  (which  nowadays  is  symbol- 
ized by  running  a  penknife  through  a  garment),  smiling 

1  The  question  is  disputed.     The  "World  Almanac"  some  years  ago 
suggested  the  figures  of:     Births,  70;  deaths,  <J7.  per  minute. 


262  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

the  breast,  cutting  off  the  hair  and  beard,  lying  on  the 
ground,  walking  about  barefooted,  and  abstaining  from 
washing  and  anointing  themselves.  The  strangest  thing 
is  that  in  some  of  the  old  tombs  opened  in  Palestine,  as 
well  as  in  Greece  and  Italy,  are  found  lachrymatories,  or 
tear  bottles,  in  which  it  was  customary  for  mourners  to 
preserve  their  tears.  Travellers  have  often  written  of  the 
extraordinary  readiness  with  which  Eastern  people  can, 
under  strong  excitement,  and  even  when  only  filling  the 
post  of  hired  mourners,  shed  great  quantities  of  tears. 

The  Chinese  who  are  special  adepts  at  copious  weeping, 
mourn  in  white;  and  every  article  of  dress  must  be  of  that 
colour  when  the  loss  is  that  of  a  near  relative.  When  the 
loss  is  in  the  second  degree,  grief  is  shown  by  simply  wear- 
ing caps  and  girdles  of  white  linen;  and  if  the  relationship 
to  the  dead  is  remote,  they  put  on  merely  shoes  and  a  queue 
of  blue.  The  laws  of  the  country  are  of  an  exceedingly 
paternal  character  and  the  death  of  a  parent  or  husband 
must  be  mourned,  willy-nilly,  under  penalty  of  sixty 
blows  and  a  year's  banishment.  In  the  case  of  a  father 
or  mother  the  law  requires  a  mourning  of  three  years, 
unless  the  survivor  is  a  government  official,  when  the 
period  is  limited  to  twenty-seven  months.  When  an  Em- 
peror dies,  all  his  subjects  let  their  hair  grow  for  a  hun- 
dred days;  but  the  custom  of  pigtails,  no  doubt,  consider- 
ably modifies  the  discomfort  of  all,  even  of  those,  who  con- 
templating a  visit  to  a  "celestial"  barber,  have  deferred 
their  visit  too  long.  At  funerals  tlto  relatives  of  the  deceased 
person  furnish  all  who  take  part  in  the  procession  with 
mourning  dresses;  as  gloves,  or  gloves  and  scarfs,  are  given 


MOURNING.  203 

in  Europe  and  America.  In  England  it  was  anciently  the 
custom  to  give  rings  and  suits  of  clothes. 

The  Greeks  and  Romans  were  not  very  dissimilar  in 
their  customs.  The  Athenian  custom  was  to  mourn  for 
thirty  days;  but  in  Sparta  only  for  ten.  They  wore  a 
coarse  black  dress,  and  in  ancient  times  cut  off  the  hair, 
additionally  cutting  off  the  manes  of  their  horses  through- 
out the  whole  army  when  a  Greek  general  died.  Both 
Greeks  and  Romans  employed  hired  mourning  women  at 
funerals,  much  in  the  same  way  as  the  English  hired  mutes, 
to  stand  at  the  doors  of  the  deceased's  residence,  and  accom- 
pany the  funeral  party  to  the  burial  ground. 

In  the  time  of  the  Roman  Republic  both  sexes  wore 
black  or  dark  bine,  but  the  men  did  not  cut  off  the  hair  or 
beard,  and  under  the  Empire,  whilst  the  men  continued  to 
wear  black,  the  women  wore  white ;  the  men  laying  aside 
their  black  garments  after  a  few  days.  Under  the  Re- 
public, on  the  death  of  a  great  man  (limited  to  the  occasion 
of  the  death  of  an  Emperor  under  the  Empire),  all  busi- 
ness was  stopped ;  and  the  temples,  baths,  forum,  schools 
of  exercise,  and  in  fact  all  places  of  concourse,  were  closed. 
The  custom  of  women  wearing  white,  commenced  with  the 
adoption  of  a  white  veil  by  the  Roman  women,  in  the  reign 
of  Augustus,  which  was  subsequently  extended  to  the  use 
of  a  complete  costume  of  white.  In  Plutarch's  life  of 
Numa  Pompilius  we  find  that  "Numa  did  inhibite  that  a 
"childe  under  three  years  should  be  bewayled,  and  that 
"the  elder  should  be  mourned  no  more  monethes  than  he 
"had  lived  yores."  1 

1  In  no  case,  however,  was  the  mourning  to  continue  for  more  than 
ten   months. 


2G4  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

The  Lycians,  who  were  very  stern  in  their  views, 
regarded  grief  as  unmanly,  and  had  a  law  compelling  men, 
if  they  went  into  mourning  at  all,  to  put  on  female  gar- 
ments. The  Japanese  wear  white,  but  relatives  in  the 
ascending  line,  and  seniors,  neither  mourn  their  junior 
kindred,  nor  go  to  their  funerals.  Mr.  A.  B.  Mitford,  in 
his  "Tales  of  Old  Japan,"  published  in  1874,  gives  a 
translation  from  a  Japanese  document,  detailing  the  proper 
observances  in  mourning,  the  conclusion  of  which  runs, 
"he  should  avoid  entering  wine  shops  or  tea  houses  on  his 
"return  from  the  funeral."  When  the  Japanese  are  in 
mourning  they  stay  at  home  for  fifty  days,  abstain  from 
animal  food,  and  from  saki  or  rice  beer,  which  they  always 
drink  hot ;  and  neither  shave  their  heads,  nor  pare  their 
nails.  This  period  of  fifty  days  is  succeeded  by  thirteen 
months  of  "second  mourning,"  during  which  the  mourner 
is  not  allowed  to  wear  bright  colours,  or  enter  a  Shinto 
temple.  Long  periods  of  mourning  are  only  observed  on 
the  death  of  parents;  for  other  relatives  the  period  varies 
from  thirty  days  to  thirteen  months  for  a  husband,  and 
from  three  days  to  seven  days  for  cousins  and  their 
children. 

In  Arabia  men  wear  no  mourning;  but  the  women 
scream,  tear  their  hair,  and  throw  earth  on  their  heads. 
The  latter  have  also  the  disagreeable  habit  of  staining  their 
hands  and  feet  with  indigo,  which  they  suffer  to  remain  on 
for  eight  days.  During  this  time  they  abstain  from  tasting 
milk,  on  the  ground  that  its  white  colour  ill  accords  with 
their  gloom  of  mind. 

The  Court  rule  in  the  Byzantine  Empire  is  very  free 


Mori;xT\<;.  2G5 

and  easy.  When  the  father,  mother,  wife,  son  or  grandson 
of  an  Emperor  dies  during  the  reign  of  the  Emperor,  the 
latter  clothes  himself  in  white  garments  "for  as  long  a 
"period  as  lie  considers  proper,"  and  afterwards  changes 
them  for  yellow,  then  for  yellow  embroidered  in  gold  and 
precious  stones,  edged  with  trimmings  of  purple,  finally 
resuming  his  imperial  costume. 

In  Fiji  the  lords  of  creation  certainly  undergo  consider- 
able discomfort,  if  not  indignity,  during  periods  of  mourn- 
ing. The  mourners  sleep  on  the  bare  ground,  and  use  only 
leaves  for  dress.  The  women  when  a  chief  dies,  burn  their 
bodies  and  amputate  their  fingers,  as  many  as  fifty  to  ono 
hundred  being  cut  off,  to  be  hung  on  his  grave;  and  "about 
"the  tenth  day"  the  women  scourge  all  the  men,  excepting 
the  highest  chiefs.  An  equally  unpleasant  custom  prevails 
in  the  Sandwich  [slands,  where  the  inhabitants  paint  the 
lower  parts  of  their  faces  black,  and  knock  out  their  front 
teeth.  Tn  Syria  it  used  to  be  the  custom  to  weep  for  the 
dead  for  several  days  in  solitary  places ;  but  amongst  the 
moderns  it  is  not  unusual  for  families,  in  moderate  cir- 
cumstances, to  be  ruined  by  the  expensive  feasts,  and  other 
commemorations,  which  are  now  held  after  the  funerals, 
and  extend  oyer  a  period  running  into  weeks. 

The  Persians  and  Scythians  rend  their  garments  with 
wailing,  and  cut  off  their  hair. 

Almost  every  known  colour  has  been  used  as  the  mourn- 
ing cloak.  Tn  Turkey,  violet  ;  in  Egypt,  yellow  or  filemol  ; 
in  Ethiopia,  brown  or  grey;  in  Syria,  Cappadocia,  and 
Armenia,  sky  colour;  while  the  use  of  other  colours,  such 
as  white,  blue  and  black  has  been  already  mentioned. 


266  HITHER    AND    THITHEK. 

Tn  Spain  the  colour  chosen  was  white  until  1498,  as  it 
was  also  in  France,  in  olden  times.  The  Kings  of  France 
mourn  in  violet;  and  the  Kings  of  England,  as  Kings  of 
France,  used  to  do  the  same.  Dangeau  tells  us  that  on 
some  public  occasion  at  the  Court  of  France,  -James  II., 
after  his  exile,  wore  violet.  "It  surprised  us,"  he  says, 
"to  see  two  Kings  of  France."  In  IS 66  we  learn  from 
Galignani's  Messenger,  that  the  Empress  Eugenie,  as  well 
as  the  other  ladies,  were  in  white  at  a  ball  given  at  the 
Prussian  embassy,  in  consequence  of  the  mourning  for 
a  Prince. 

The  colours  seem  to  have  been  selected  for  a  great  variety 
of  reasons.  White  was  selected  as  the  symbol  of  purity 
and  innocence ;  black,  in  remembrance  of  darkness  and 
death ;  brown  or  grey,  of  the  dust  to  which  the  body 
returns,  or  the  colour  of  the  earth  which  receives  it ;  blue, 
or  sky  colour,  of  the  place  to  which  it  was  hoped  the  dead 
had  attained,  that  is,  the  heavens;  yellow,  of  decay,  the 
dead  being  compared  to  leaves  and  flowers,  which  turn  yel- 
low as  they  wither  and  die ;  violet,  being  a  mixture  of 
black  and  blue,  as  the  emblem  of  mingled  sorrow  and  hope. 

The  references  in  the  early  writers  and  poets  to  the 
colours  of  mourning  are  very  numerous.  Gough  gives  a 
great  number  of  references  to  the  classics  to  prove  that  the 
colour  of  mourning  has  in  most  instances  been  black  from 
the  earliest  antiquity,1  though  Plutarch  is  to  be  quoted  on 
the  other  side :  "The  women  in  their  mournyng  .... 
"wore  clothed  bothe  they  and  their  kinsfolk  in  white 
"apparel,  like  as  then  the  dod  body  was  wrapped  in  white 
1  Sepulchral  monuments,  Vol.  II,  p.  20. 


MOURNING.  267 

"clothes."  The  white  "coloure  was  thought  fittesl  for  the 
"ded,  because  it  is  clere,  pure,  and  sincer,  and  leaste 
"defiled."3  Black  was  the  color,  if  it  be  admitted  to  be 
a  color  at  all,  adopted  by  the  majority  of  peoples,  as  pre- 
sumably the  fittest  emblem  of  the  sorrow  or  grief  with 
which  the  mind  is  supposed  to  be  clouded.  As  death  is 
the  privation  of  life,  and  black  a  privation  of  light,  so 
this  color  was  chosen  as  fitting  to  denote  sadness. 

The  thought  in  the  following  lines  is  very  cheerful  and 

bright: 

"Six  pretty  maids  pray  let  me  have 
"To  bear  me  to  the  silent  grave, 
"All  cloth'd  in  white — a  comely  show 
"To  bear  me  to  the  shades  below." 

Court  and  public  mourning  are  worn  in  both  the  conti- 
nents  of  Europe  and  America  on  the  occurrence  of  the 
death  of  the  highest  personages.  It  was  so  in  the  United 
States  on  the  deaths  of  Franklin,  Washington,  Lafayette 
and  Lincoln.  In  Europe  the  details  of  Court  mourning 
are  the  subject  of  very  minute  and  explicit  rules,  pre- 
scribed by  authority,  and- officially  published  for  the  guid- 
ance of  those  who  are  bound  to  wear  it. 

It  cannot  be  said  that  the  apparel  is  always  indicative 
of  any  real  feeling.  When  Louis  XL  had  accomplished 
the  death  of  an  obstructive  in  his  ambitious  path,  he 
received  the  news  that  his  secret  manoeuvre  had  been  suc- 
cessful  with  solemnity;  took  oil  his  celebrated  cap  with  the 
little  images  of  saints  in  its  rim,  muttered  a  prayer,  and 
announced:    "The  Court  will  go  into  mourning  for  three 

1  Langley's  translation  of  Polydore  Vergil. 


268  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

"weeks."  What  a  scene  for  actors  hereafter  to  depict; 
and  how  strongly  must  his  feelings  have  been  in  disso- 
nance with  the  assumed  apparel!  Bluff  King  Hal  put  on 
white  mourning  for  the  unfortunate  Anne  Boleyn,  though 
crimson  "would  have  been  a  much  suitable  colour,"  for  the 
suit  in  which  he  was  formally  betrothed  to  Jane  Seymour, 
upon  the  morning  following  that  on  which  Anne's  head 
dropped  on  the  scaffold  on  Tower  Hill.  Perhaps  he  was 
of  the  mind  of  the  poet  Pope,  who  wrote : 

"Grieve  for  an  hour,  perhaps,  then  mourn  a  year."1 

Anne  Boleyn  had  previously  worn  yellow  mourning  for 
Catherine  of  Arragon,  and  Strutt  tells  us,  that  at  the 
funeral  of  Mary,  Queen  of  Scots,  the  ladies  had  "Parris- 
"heads  and  barbes  and  the  gentlemen  whyte  headdresses." 
Jesse  says  that  James  I.  "issued  an  indecent  order  that  no 
"mourning  should  be  Avorn  for  his  deceased  son,"2  Prince 
Henry ;  and  according  to  Sir  James  Finett,  a  nice  obseiwer 
and  Master  of  Ceremonies  to  the  Court,  the  Princess  Eliza- 
beth obeyed  her  father  in  the  letter  but  mourned  her 
brother,  to  whom  she  was  strongly  attached,  "apparelled 
"in  white."3 

In  civilized  nations  the  gradual  return  from  black  to 
gay  colours,  is  through  the  intermediate  hues  of  purple  and 
violet,  which  denote  the  second  mourning.  So  well  is  this 
regulated  that  in  many  mourning  establishments  the 
various  departments  are  duly  labelled  as  the  "Deep"  and 
"Light  Affliction"  departments.    Nor  if  you  go  to  purchase 

1  Elegy  on  an  Unfortunate  La  fly,  line  56. 

2  "Memoirs  of  the  Court  of  England,"  Vol.  I,  p.  140. 

3  But  see  Jesse  again.    The  matter  is  somewhat  in  dispute. 


MOURNING.  269 

a  hatband,  must  you  feel  hurt  at  the  soft,  sympathizing 
tone  of  voice  in  which  the  shopkeeper,  while  complying 
with  your  request,  remarks:  ''Yes,  sir;  certainly,  sir — a 
"deep  band,  sir  ?  a  large  legacy  ?" 

The  great  and  wasteful  extravagance  by  families,  quite 
unable  to  afford  it,  upon  lavish  funeral  entertainments  has 
afforded  many  writers  opportunities  for  including  in  their 
romances  strange,  but  nevertheless  historically  correct, 
accounts  of  the  shifts  to  which  such  extravagances  have 
subsequently  reduced  the  survivors;  and  perhaps  in  none 
has  this  been  more  cleverly  done  than  in  the  "Bride  of 
"Lammermoor,"  where  the  shifts  of  old  Caleb  Balderstone 
to  hide  the  poverty  of  the  master,  whose  last  revenues  had 
been  expended  on  the  occasion  of  the  death  of  his  father, 
are  so  humorously  delineated. 

In  the  beginning  of  the  reign  of  Charles  II.,  at  a  lord's 
funeral  at  Shrewsbury,  during  the  customary  oration  there 
stood  upon  the  coffin  a  large  pot  of  wine  out  of  which  every- 
one drank  to  the  health  of  the  deceased,  and  another  writer 
says  that  the  funeral  entertainments  were  so  profuse  on 
these  occasions  that  it  cost  less  to  portion  off  a  daughter 
than  to  bury  a  dead  wife. 

In  the  "Paston  letters"  x  is  an  account  of  one  such  revel 
which  shows  that  for  three  days  one  man  was  occupied  in 
flaying  beasts;  and  that  seven  barrels  of  beer,  five  of  ale, 
one  of  ale- of  greatest  assize,  thirty-eight  gallons  of  ale, 
and  a  runlet  of  red  wine  of  fifteen  gallons,  were  con- 
sumed ;  and  that  five  coombs  of  malt  at  one  time  and  ten 

1  Xo.  549.     The  funeral  was  that  of  John  Paston.     The  account 
fills  pages. 


270  HITHER    AND    T1IIT1IEE. 

at  another  "were  brewed  up  specially  for  the  occasion.  The 
food,  which  was  in  proportion,  and  other  drinks,  included 
three  hundred  and  ten  eggs,  twenty  gallons  of  milk,  eight 
gallons  of  cream,  twenty-two  sheep,  forty-one  pigs,  forty- 
nine  calves ;  besides  geese,  chickens,  capons  and  such  gear. 
In  order  that  those  who  were  at  this  revel,  which  was  held 
in  a  priory  at  Bromholm,  on  the  northeast  coast,  might 
make  a  due  and  comely  appearance,  a  barber  was  occupied 
five  days  in  smartening  up  the  monks  for  the  ceremony. 
This  is  a  dear  record,  as  Dudley,  Lord  jSTorth,  writes :  "ISTor 
"are  all  banquets  (no  more  than  music)  ordained  for 
"merry  humour,  some  being  used  even  at  funeralls." 

During  the  Commonwealth  an  account  of  a  carefully- 
conducted  funeral  is  given.  It  is  to  be  found  in  the  life 
of  Sir  William  Dugdale.1  One  Mr.  Fisher  Dilke,  a  gen- 
tleman of  means,  but  cynical  disposition,  lost  his  wife. 
"She  was  a  frequenter  of  conventicles ;  and  dying  before 
"her  husband,  he  first  stripped  his  barn  wall  to  make  her 
"a  coffin ;  then  bargained  with  the  clerk  for  a  groat  to  make 
"a  grave  in  the  churchyard,  to  save  eightpence  by  one  in 
"the  church.  This  done,  he  speaketh  about  eight  of  his 
"neighbours  to  meet  at  his  house,  for  bearers  ;  for  whom  he 
"provided  three  twopenny  cakes  and  a  bottle  of  claret. 
"And  some  being  come,  he  read  a  chapter  of  Job  till  all 
"were  then  ready;  when,  having  distributed  the  cake  and 
"wine  among  them,  they  took  up  the  corpse,  he  following 
"them  to  the  grave.  Then  putting  himself  in  the  parson's 
"place  (none  being  there),  the  corpse  being  laid  in  the  grave 
"and  a  spade  of  mould  cast  thereon,  lie  said:    'Ashes  to 

lPage  106. 


MOURNING.  271 

"  'ashes,  dust  to  dust ;'  adding,  'Lord  now  lettest  Thou 
"  'Thy  servant  depart  in  peace,  for  mine  eyes  have  seen 
"  'Thy  salvation,'  and  so  returned  home." 

One  pretty  custom  is  said  to  have  been  observed  at 
Stonesfield,  in  Oxfordshire,  where  while  the  clergyman 
read  the  sentences  beginning,  "Man  that  is  born  of  a 
"woman,"  etc.,  four  girls  held  the  white  pall  by  its  four 
corners  over  the  coffin;  then,  after  the  coffin  had  been 
lowered  into  the  grave,  they  held  the  pall  over  the  grave 
in  a  similar  manner,  until  the  service  was  concluded. 

Freemasons  were  formerly  in  the  habit  of  throwing 
gloves  into  the  grave  of  a  deceased  brother ;  but  in  Malta, 
and  also  in  the  United  States  at  the  present  time,  instead 
of  gloves,  when  the  clergyman  has  finished,  the  Worshipful 
Master  advances  and  drops  three  pieces  of  evergreen  into 
the  grave  or  tomb.  On  his  retiring,  the  Wardens  do  the 
same,  and  lastly  the  brethren. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  last  century  it  was  customary 
to  give  religious  books  to  the  persons  who  attended  funerals 
with  an  inscription  on  the  cover,  such  as : 

"In  memory 

of  the 

Rev'd.  Mr.  Henry  Lukin 

who    died    17    September    1719 

aged    62." 

Black  sealing-wax  was  the  only  token  of  mourning 
employed  until  comparatively  recently  in  letter  writing, 
instances  of  its  use  being  known  as  far  back  as  1556.  Then 
the  use  of  quarto  sized  paper  blacked  at  the  edges  came  in ; 
but  black  borders  to  paper  were  unknown  in  England  till 


272  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

1754,  in  which  year  a  letter  written  to  Walpole  from 
Florence,  on  paper  with  a  narrow  mourning  border  con- 
tains this  passage:  "I  believe  you  never  saw  any  thing 
"like  it  before — here  everybody  uses  it  but  myself.  I 
"begged  a  sheet,  for  this  occasion  only,  and  another  to  keep 
"as  a  curiosity."  Black  edged  note  paper  came  into  very 
general  use  about  1840. 

A  writer  of  the  present  century  who  despised  the  assump- 
tion towards  strangeness  of  mourning  which  the  modern 
custom  has  so  ridiculously  exaggerated,  says :  "I  knew  a 
"young  lady  who  wore  on  the  same  finger  a  ring  set  around 
"with  death's  heads  and  cross  marrow  bones  for  the  loss 
"of  her  father,  and  another  prettily  embellished  with  burn- 
"ing  hearts  pierced  through  with  darts  in  respect  of  her 
"lover;"  and  he  adds  as  to  writing  paper,  "An  acquaint- 
ance of  mine  has  contrived  a  new  sort  of  mourning 
"paper,  as  the  margin  of  the  elegant  paper  from  France, 
"for  the  use  of  fine  ladies  and  gentlemen,  is  prettily 
"adorned  with  flowers,  true  lovers'  knots,  little  cupids  and 
"amorous  posies  in  red  ink,  he  intends  that  the  margin  of 
"his  paper  shall  be  stamped  in  black  ink,  with  the  figure  of 
"tomb  stones,  hour  glasses,  bones,  skulls  and  other  emblems 
"of  death  to  be  used  by  persons  of  quality  when  in 
"mourning." 

Really  the  remarks  are  hardly  too  severe  in  the  face  of 
the  absurd  mourning  paper  not  infrequently  used,  where 
the  black  margins  are  so  enormous  that  there  is  hardly 
space  left  for  the  writing  intended  to  be  put  upon  the 
sheets. 


Friday, 


18 


Friday. 


WHATEVER  explanations  may  be  made,  yet  the 
fact  remains  that  in  the  popular  mind  beliefs  in 
lucky  and  unlucky  days  exist;  and  beyond  doubt 
the  belief  in  Friday  being  an  unlucky  day  has  taken  the 
precedence,  in  general  credit,  of  all  such  superstitions. 

The  ill  odour  of  Friday  among  the  days  of  the  week,  can- 
not be  due  to  any  astrological  tradition,  for  Friday  is  the 
day  of  Venus — and  Venus  is  a  fortunate  planet.  Xor  is 
the  old  rhyming  proverb:  ''Friday's  moon,  come  when  it 
"will,  comes  too  soon,"  sufficiently  general  to  account  for 
this  belief,  which  is  accepted  amongst  a  large  number  of 
nations.  It  was  popularly  credited  as  a  fact  that  Good 
Friday  was  a  "bonanza  day"  fur  witches;  and  in  the  last 
dying  speech  and  confession,  in  1033,  of  Margaret  John- 
son, a  reputed  witch,  she  says:  "Good  Friday  is  one  con- 
stant day  for  a  generall  meeting  of  witches,  and  on  Good 
"Friday  last  they  had  a  generall  mectinge  neere  Pendle 
"Water  syde."  Lucky  was  that  benighted  traveller  <>n  a 
Good  Friday  who  was  possessed  of  the  old  charm  for  curing 
the  bewitched  : 

"l"] ii in  Good  Friday 
"I  will  fast  while  I  may 
"Until  I  hear  them  knoll 
"Our  Lord's  own  bull." 


276  HITHER    AND    THITHEE. 

The  evil  odour  of  the  day  is  attributed  in  an  old  manu- 
script preserved  in  the  British  Museum  to  the  fact  that 
Adam  and  Eve  ate  the  forbidden  fruit  on  a  Friday  and 
died  on  a  Friday;  and  in  the  south  of  France  the  term 
Friday  Tree — in  its  reference  to  the  "accursed  tree" — is 
applied  to  an  unsuccessful  undertaking  or  person;  being 
used  to  express  a  trial  or  misfortune.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  old  lines 

"Friday's  dream  on  Saturday  told 

"Is  sure  to  come  true  if  it's  ever  so  old," 

speak  both  good  and  ill  of  dreams  dreamt  on  that  day; 
inasmuch  as  the  dreamer's  satisfaction  at  the  fulfilment 
of  the  dream,  will  naturally  be  regulated  by  the  fact 
whether  it  was  a  desirable  or  an  unpleasant  one.  Sir 
Thomas  Overbury  in  his  description  of  "a  faire  and  happy 
"milk-mayd,"  writes:  "Her  dreams  are  so  chaste,  that 
"she  dare  tell  them;  only  a  Fridaie's  drcamc  is  all  her 
"superstition:  that  she  conccales  for  feare  of  anger."  * 

There  can  be  little  doubt  but  that  the  belief  in  Friday 
being  an  unlucky  clay  originated  in  its  being  the  day  of  the 
Crucifixion.  Chaucer  refers  to  the  traditional  belief  where 
he  speaks  of  the  death  of  Richard  Cccur  de  Lion  on  a 
Friday,  in  these  lines: 

"0  Gaunfred,  deere  maister  soverayn 

"That,  whan  thy  worthy  kyng  Richard  was  slayn 

"With  shot,  compleynedest  his  deeth  so  soore 

"Why  no  hadde  1  now  thy  sentence  and  thy  loore 

"The  Friday  for  to  chide,  as  diden  ye? — 

"For  on  a  Friday,  soothly  slayn  was  he."2 

1  Characters,  etc. 

2  The  Nonnes  Preestes  Tale. 


FRIDAY.  277 

The  Brahmins  of  India  say  that  on  a  Friday  no  busi- 
ness must  be  commenced;  and  among  the  Finns,  whoever 
undertakes  any  now  business  on  a  Monday  or  a  Friday, 

is  warned  to  expect  very  little  success.  The  rigid  custom 
of  the  Spaniards  never  to  undertake  anything  of  conse- 
quence on  a  Friday  is  well  known;  whilst  the  Neapolitans 
foretell  evil  of  two  days,  their  proverb  running:  "Neither 
"on  Friday  nor  Tuesday  marry  or  journey  commence." 
On  the  other  hand,  the  great  Mogul  or  Shah  of  Persia, 
thought  differently  of  the  day,  and  used  at  the  end  of  his 
devotions,  to  turn  to  his  attendant  and  say,  "O  that  my 
"death  may  happen  on  a  Friday,  for  blessed  is  he  who 
"dieth  on  that  day."1 

The  Registrar-General  of  England  says  in  one  of  his 
reports:  "Seamen  will  not  sail  and  women  will  not  wed 
"on  Friday  so  willingly  as  on  other  days  of  the  week;" 
and  remarks  that  out  of  four  thousand  and  fifty-seven 
marriages,  in  the  midland  districts  of  England,  not  two 
per  cent,  were  solemnized  on  Friday;  while  thirty-two  per 
cent,  were  celebrated  on  Sunday.  The  next  day  in  favor 
was  Monday  with  twenty-one  per  cent.,  and  then  Saturday 
with  seventeen  per  cent.  This  dislike  of  being  married  on 
a  Friday,  is  also  preserved  in  the  West  Sussex  belief,  that 
"owing  to  Adam  and  Eve  having  eaten  the  forbidden  fruit 
"on  a  Friday,  that  of  all  days  was  to  be  avoided  for  mar- 
"riages,  or  you  and  your  wife  will  lead  a  cat  and  dog  life." 
A  different  state  of  things  has  been  found  to  prevail  in 
Scotland,  for  the  City  Chamberlain  of  Glasgow,  a  few 
years  since,  wrote  that  it  was  a  well  established  fact,  that 
1  Memoirs  of  the  Mogul  Empire,  by  Evadut  Khan,  p.  10. 


278  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

nine-tenths  of  the  marriages  in  Glasgow  were  celebrated 
on  Friday,  and  only  a  few  on  Tuesdays  and  Wednesdays ; 
while  Saturday  and  Monday  were  still  more  rarely  adopted. 
He  adds :  "I  have  never  heard  of  such  a  thing  in  Glasgow 
"as  a  marriage  on  Sunday."  It  would  appear,  therefore, 
that  in  Scotland,  Friday  is  the  lucky  day  of  the  week ;  at 
least,  for  marriages.  In  the  west  of  Scotland,  on  the  event- 
ful day  of  marriage,  which  was  "always  a  Friday,"  great 
attention  was  paid  to  every  incident ;  for  if  the  bride  broke 
a  dish,  or  the  postman  forgot  to  deliver  a  letter  to  the 
bride  until  he  was  some  way  on  his  journey  and  had  to 
return,  or  some  soot  came  down  the  chimney,  it  was  a 
bad  omen  for  the  future  wedded  life. 

It  seems  that  in  parts  of  America  at  least,  many  persons 
look  upon  Friday  as  an  unlucky  day,  for  a  statement,  dated 
Philadelphia,  is  printed,  announcing  that  during  one  entire 
year  only  one  couple  was  married  by  the  Mayor  on  that 
day  of  the  week. 

If  it  was  not  good  to  marry  on  a  Friday,  so,  in  parts 
of  England,  it  was  rendered  disagreeable,  at  least  to  the 
parties  immediately  concerned,  to  court  on  that  day.  A 
man  in  the  north  of  Lancashire  was  recently  busy  most 
industriously  belabouring  a  frying-pan,  exactly  in  the  way 
country  people  do  when  bees  are  swarming ;  and  as  it  was 
not  the  season  of  the  year  for  bees  to  swarm,  he  was  asked 
what  induced  him  to  make  that  hideous  noise.  His  answer 
was,  "Why  this  be  Friday  and  there  is  a  woman  down  the 
"lane  a'courting.  Women  doing  that  there  thing  o'  a 
"Friday  is  always  sarved  so." 

The  evil  repute  of  Friday  led  to  the  publication  of  a 


riUDAY. 


279 


singular  statistical  fact  by  Monsieur  Minard.     "Friday," 

he  says,  "is  considered  such  an  unlucky  day  in  France  thai 
"not  only  is  the  number  of  travellers  by  rail  much  smaller 
"on  that,  than  on  other  days,  but  the  difference  is  also 
"sensibly  felt  in  the  receipts  of  the  omnibusscs."  But  it 
was  not  always  so  in  France,  for  it  is  related  of  King 
Henry  IV.,  that  he  considered  Friday  lucky,  and  began 
his  undertakings  by  preference  on  that  day. 

One  sarcastic  writer  has  suggested,  that  it  is  probable 
that  the  dislike  to  this  day,  arose  from  the  fact  that  it  is 
late  in  the  week,  and  both  money  runs  short  among  the 
poor,  and  time  amongst  those  who  ought  to  have  been  busy; 
and  perhaps  also,  because  Friday  is  a  fast  day  in  Catholic 
countries,  and  so  in  olden  times  people  looking  back  would 
remember  Fridays,  as  generally  associated  with  something 
less  pleasant  than  other  days. 

Tn  the  Domestic  Series  of  the  Calendar  of  State  papers 
is  preserved  the  following  curious  entry:  "1G20  April  C> 
"Thomas  Folvety  solicits  the  permission  of  Lord  Zouch, 
"Lord  Warden  of  the  Cinque  Ports  to  kill  a  hare  on  Good 
"Friday,  as  huntsmen  say  that  those  who  have  not  a  hare 
"against  Easter  must  eat  a  red  herring." 

Sailors,  who  are  most  generally  credited  with  this  super- 
stition, have  not  always  come  to  grief  when  sailing  on  a 
Friday;  for  it  was  on  a  Friday,  the  3d  of  August,  1492, 
that  Columbus  set  sail  from  Palos,  in  Spain,  in  three 
caravels,  carrying  one  hundred  and  twenty  men:  begin- 
ning on  a  Friday,  strange  to  say,  the  greatest  and  most 
momentous  maritime  enterprise  ever  undertaken  by  man, 
and  which  entitled  him  to  be  called  the  Discoverer  of  the 
New  World. 


280  HITHER    AND    THITHEB. 

It  is  notorious  that  sailors  as  a  body,  even  if  they  now 
do  so  to  a  less  degree  than  heretofore,  did  regard  it  as 
most  unlucky,  and  as  tempting  Providence,  to  sail  on  a 
Friday.  It  is  doubtful,  however,  what  truth  is  to  be 
credited  to  the  story,  alleged  by  Cooper,  the  novelist,  to  be 
an  event  of  which  he  had  personal  knowledge,  that  to  dis- 
abuse sailors  of  the  superstition  against  sailing  on  a  Friday, 
a  ship  was  begun  on  a  Friday,  the  first  plank  laid  on  a 
Friday,  launched  on  a  Friday,  commanded  by  a  captain 
named  Friday,  sailed  on  a  Friday,  and  was  never  heard 
of  more.  This  same  story  is  attributed  elsewhere  to  the 
action  of  some  gentlemen  of  Xew  York  who  wished  to 
"disabuse  the  vulgar;"  but  with  the  same  result.1 

It  is  related  of  Admiral,  the  Earl  of  Dundonald,  that 
when  he  was  in  command  of  TI.M.S.  'AYcllesley,"  pursuant 
to  orders  he  got  under  way  from  Plymouth,  on  a  Friday, 
the  24th  of  March,  1848;  but  after  the  ship  got  outside 
the  breakwater,  she  was  recalled  by  the  Port  Admiral,  and 
did  not  leave  again  till  the  next  day.  Her  return  was 
for  the  purpose  of  taking  in  mail  bags,  but  the  firm  belief 
of  the  men  was,  that  the  gallant  Admiral  purposely  left 
something  behind  to  avoid  going  to  sea  on  the  unlucky  day. 

The  ill-fated  "Amazon,"  carrying  mails  to  the  West 
Indies,  sailed  from  Southampton,  under  command  of  Cap- 
tain Symons,  on  Friday,  the  2d  of  January,  1852;  and 
on  the  very  same  day  the  Birkenhead  troopship,  whose 

1  In  fact  the  story  is  of  wide  currency.  Walsh  in  his  "Curiosities  of 
"Popular  Customs"  quotes  Mrs.  Rebecca  Harding  Davis  as  telling  it. 
In  her  version  Wilmington,  Del.,  is  the  place  of  the  building  of  the 
boat;  Isaac  Harvey  the  name  of  the  builder;  and  "Friday,  of  Wil- 
"mington,"  the  name  of  the  boat. 


FRIDAY.  281 

disastrous  loss  was  accompanied  by  a  terrible  loss  of  life, 
sailed  from  Portsmouth.  Neither  ship  returned.  An 
officer  on  the  Melbourne  Royal  Mail  Steamer,  which 
subsequently  came  to  grief,  wrote  from  Lisbon  to  a  rela- 
tive: "I  joined  the  ship  on  a  Friday,  I  procured  my 
"register  ticket  on  a  Friday,  the  ship  left  London  on  a 
"Friday,  and  she  eventually  sailed  from  Plymouth  on  a 
"Friday."  It  is  singular  that  on  leaving  Plymouth  he 
mentioned  his  apprehension  at  again  starting  on  this  appar- 
ently ill-omened  day  and  that  his  fears  were  soon  after 
realized. 

One  curious  tradition  about  Friday,  related  by  Del  Pio 
in  his  "Disquisitions  on  Magic,"  is  that  it  has  long  been 
an  unlucky  day  for  cutting  one's  nails;  a  notion  which  in 
a  somewhat  extended  form  prevails  in  France,  for  it  is 
unlucky  in  that  country  to  cut  the  nails  on  any  day  which 
has  an  "r"  in  its  name,  viz:  Mardi,  Mercredi  or  Vendredi 
(Tuesday,  "Wednesday  or  Friday).  Yet  when  one  steps 
into  Holland  it  is  quite  different,  as  by  cutting  the  nails 
there  on  a  Friday,  one  is  protected  from  toothache.  Ac- 
cording to  Ausonius,  howrever,  among  the  Romans  Wed- 
nesday was  the  proper  day  for  that  important  operation. 

It  is  an  old  belief  that  the  observance  of  the  custom  of 
eating  hot  cross  buns  on  Good  Friday,  protects  the  house 
in  which  they  are  eaten  from  fire,  besides  bringing  other 
good  luck;  but  all  the  best  feelings  and  beliefs  of  child- 
hood, in  the  propriety  of  thus  doing,  are  put  to  flight  by 
studying  the  antiquaries1  who  elaborate  a  theory,  that 
these  buns  are  nothing  but  the  cakes  against  the  prepara- 

1  Hutchinson,  Bryant,  etc. 


282  HITHER    AND    TIITTHEB. 

tion  of  which  the  prophet  Jeremiah  inveighed  when  ho 
wrote  the  Israelitish  "women  kneaded  their  dough  to 
"make  cakes  to  the  Qneen  of  Heaven;"  x  and  state  that  the 
sacred  cakes  offered  at  the  Arkite  Temple,  were  called 
"bous ;"  in  one  of  its  cases  "boun,"  or  as  the  Latins  would 
write  it  "bun/'  whence  we  have  borrowed  our  English 
word  bun.  Alack,  alack!  we  are  to  believe  that  from  a 
pagan  source  has  originated  the  old  ecclesiastical  custom 
of  selling  a  sort  of  consecrated  cakes  called  buns  on  Good 
Friday.  Perhaps,  be  it  said  for  our  comfort,  the  Christian 
practice  is  none  the  worse  for  having  been  originally 
pagan ;  as  probably  the  buns,  saffron  cakes,  or  symnels  of 
Good  Friday,  through  their  "being,  formerly  at  least, 
"unleavened,  may  have  a  retrospect  to  the  unleavened 
"bread  of  the  Jews ;  in  the  same  manner  as  lamb  at  Easter 
"to  the  Paschal  Lamb."2 

Various  places  and  streets  have  been  named  Friday. 
Xear  Arundel,  in  England,  on  a  Down,  the  property  of  the 
Duke  of  Norfolk,  are  extensive  earthworks  forming  a 
regular  encampment,  known  by  the  name  of  "Friday 
"Church ;"  and  an  important  street  in  Cheapside,  London, 
is  called  "Friday  Street;"  but  Stow,  in  his  "Survey  of 
"London,"  published  in  1508,  says  this  street  was  "so 
"called  by  fishmongers  dwelling  there  and  serving  Friday's 
"market;"  an  explanation,  which,  however  good  in  itself, 
will  not  explain  the  numerous  Friday  streets  in  the  other 
counties  of  England  ;  as,  for  example,  Surrey  and  Suffolk, 
in  which  seven  or  eight  instances  exist. 

1  Jeremiah  vii.   18;   xliv,  19. 

2  Gentleman's  Magazrne. 


FRIDAY.  2S3 

It  is  a  tradition  in  the  County  of  Hampshire,  in  villages 
around  the  city  of  Winchester,  thai  if  parsley  seed  be  sown 
on  any  other  day  than  Good  Friday,  it  will  not  come 
double. 

Another  strange  lore  attaches  to  bread  baked  on  Good 
Friday.  It  was  said  that  it  would  keep  good  for  more  than 
a  year,  and  a  faithful  Shropshire  domestic  was  most  indig- 
nant that  her  master  should  doubt  such  a  fact.  "Why, 
"sir,"  she  said,  "everybody  bakes  Good  Friday  bread — -it's 
"good  for  babies  when  they  have  the  belly  ache ;"  and  to 
clench  the  matter,  she  added,  "I  myself  know  of  an  old 
"Shropshire  woman  living  in  London  who  from  mere  force 
"of  habit  goes  on  baking  Good  Friday  bread,  year  after 
"year,  and  always  finds  it  good  when  the  anniversary  comes 
"around."  On  another  occasion  a  lady  inquired  of  a 
labourer's  wife,  in  Warwickshire,  how  her  neighbour's  little 
son  was.  The  latter  replied  that  he  had  been  very  poorly 
with  a  bowel  complaint  and  that  nothing  his  mother  gave 
him  did  him  any  good,  "so,"  she  continued,  "I  took  him 
"a  piece  of  Good  Friday  bread  and  grated  some  of  it  in  a 
"little,  brandy — the  child  took  it  and  it  cured  him.  Good 
"Friday  bread  never  grows  mouldy  and  is  very  useful  in 
"brandy  as  a  medicine.  The  piece  I  have  now  has  been 
"baked  seven  or  eight  years.  It  is  quite  good,  but  very 
"dry.  I  remember  my  mother  having  some  that  had  been 
"made  m'ore  than  twenty  years,  and  I  always  keep  it 
"wrapped  up  in  paper  in  a  box  upstairs." 

The  loaves  or  buns  so  preserved,  were  also  used  as  a 
panacea  for  all  the  diseases  to  which  domestic  animals  are 
liable,  and  a  Good  Friday  loaf  so  preserved,  would  prevent 


284  HITHER   AND    THITHEK. 

other  bread  in  the  house  placed  with  it  from  going  ropy, 
although  baked  at  another  period  of  the  year. 

What  further  qualities  could  be  desired? 

Perhaps  the  whole  matter  is  well  summed  up  in  the  lines 
from  "Poor  Robin's  Almanac,"  published  in  1733 : 

"Good  Friday  comes  this  month,  the  old  woman   runs 
"With  one  or  two  a  penny  hot  cross  buns, 
"Whose  virtue  is,  if  you  believe  what's  said, 
"They'll  not  grow  mouldy  like  the  common  bread." 


Fables. 


Fables. 


IT  is  too  generally  assumed  that  the  subject  of  fables  is 
one  that  is  only  fit  for  juvenile  readers.    As  a  fact,  it 
is  a  matter  of  wide  literary  interest;  one  that  has 
attracted  the  attention  of  very  learned  students;  and  one 
on  which  writers  and  readers  are  still  very  much  in  the 
dark. 

To  define  a  fable  or  an  apologue  is  not  easy.  Oliver 
Goldsmith  in  his  essay  upon  fables,  says:  "Fable  is  the 
"method  of  conveying  truth  under  the  form  of  an 
"allegory." 

Lafontaine,  in  speaking  of  his  collection  of  fables,  calls 
an  apologue: 

"A    comedy    where    hundred    acts    convene 
"In  which  the  Universe  supplies  the  scene." 

In  effect  an  apologue  is  a  kind  of  little  drama  with  a 
proposition,,  a  plot  and  a  denouement. 

De  la  Motte  defines  it  as  "an  instruction  under  the 
"allegory  of  action." 

Early  critics  divided  fables  into  three  classes:  rational, 
moral  and  mixed. 


288  HITHER.    AND    THITHER. 

Rational  fables  are  parables  or  relations  of  things  sup- 
posed to  have  been  said  or  done  by  men,  and  which  might 
possibly  have  been  said  and  done,  though  in  reality  they 
were  not,  such  as  the  parables  of  the  Bible.  For  example : 
"The  Ten  Virgins;"  "The  Prodigal  Son;"  and  Nathan's 
parable  of  the  "Ewe  Lamb." 

Moral  fables  are  those  wherein  not  only  beasts,  but  trees 
and  other  inanimate  substances  are  introduced  as  actors 
and  speakers.  This  class  of  fable  is  exemplified  in  the 
volume  of  iEsop,  and  in  the  Old  Testament  in  the  stories 
of  "The  Trees  electing  a  King,"  and  "The  Thistle  and 
"the  Cedar."  Though  the  rational  fable  might  be  true, 
the  moral  could  not,  because  brutes  and  stocks  cannot 
speak. 

Mixed  fables  are  those  wherein  men  and  brutes  are 
introduced  conversing  together ;  or  where  the  rational  and 
moral  fables  are  mixed  in  their  construction. 

Justin,  the  Latin  historian,  gives  one  of  the  latter.  A 
Ligurian  collated  a  fable  to  alarm  an  ancient  Gaulish  king 
against  the  Massilians,  who  after  the  marriage  of  Protis 
and  Gyptis  had  founded  Marseilles.  He  told  them  a  dog, 
big  with  young,  begged  a  shepherd  a  place  to  lay  her  whelps 
in,  this  favor  granted,  she  further  begged  leave  to  rear 
them  there.  At  length  the  whelps  being  grown  up,  the 
mother  depending  on  the  strength  of  her  family,  claimed 
the  right  to  the  place  as  her  own.  "In  like  manner,"  ho 
continued,  "the  people  of  Marseilles,  who  are  now  regarded 
"as  your  tenants,  will  one  day  become  the  masters  of  your 
"territory."  * 

1  Book  XLIII,  chap.  iv. 


FABLES.  289 

A  true  fable  must  consist  of  a  clear,  probable,  short  and 
pleasant  narrative,  with  a  pithy  interpretation  to  show  the 
moral  sense  or  design  thereof. 

The  great  writers  of  fables  are  not  many ;  and  who  they 
really  were  is  a  matter  of  endless  dispute  and  argument. 

The  two  fables  alluded  to  in  the  Old  Testament  are 
amongst  the  very  oldest  extant.     They  are  very  familiar. 

The  first  relates  *  that  Gideon  being  dead,  his  bastard 
son,  Abimelech,  slew  all  his  brethren,  three  score  and  ten 
persons,  Jotham  alone  escaping.  In  anger  at  the  rejection 
from  the  judgeship  Jotham  related  the  story  of  the  trees 
going  to  anoint  a  king  over  them.  How  that  the  olive  re- 
fused to  leave  his  fatness  and  go  to  be  promoted ;  then  that 
the  fig  tree  refused  to  forsake  his  sweetness  and  good  fruit ; 
and  again  that  the  vine  would  not  leave  his  wine  which 
cheereth  God  and  man.  But  that  the  bramble  accepted,  in- 
viting the  trees  to  come  and  put  their  trust  in  his  shadow. 
Jotham  enforced  the  story  by  showing  the  wrong  done  by 
Abimelech,  which  would  redound  to  their  misery. 

The  second  2  tells  that  when  Amaziah  provoked  Jehoash 
and  was  overcome  and  spoiled,  Jehoash  warned  him  before- 
hand, saying:  "The  thistle  that  was  in  Lebanon  sent  to  the 
"cedar  that  was  in  Lebanon,  saying:  'Give  thy  daughter 
"  'to  my  son  to  wife ;'  and  there  passed  by  a  wild  beast 
"that  was  in  Lebanon  and  trod  down  the  thistle,"  and 
Jehoash  added  that  he  would  be  destroyed  if  he  battled 
with  Israel. 

Xow  passing  over    these    two    instances,  the  question 


fudges   ix:    5-21. 
2 II  Kings  xiv:   9. 


t 


10 


290  HITHER   AND    THITHER. 

arises,  Whence  did  fable  spring  ?  The  great  collections  of 
Bidpai,  Lokman,  iEsop  and  Phsedrus  were  not  original 
with  those  writers ;  and  Lokman  and  iEsop  probably  never 
lived,  but  are  rather  impersonations  adapted  to  support 
the  authorships — pegs  whereon  to  hang  hats — not  living 
persons.  The  question,  Whence  did  fable  come?  is  not 
easily  answered. 

Sir  George  Cornewall  Lewis,  to  whom  we  are  indebted 
for  an  edition  of  the  'Tables  of  Babrios,"  the  Greek 
fabulist,1  since  translated  into  English  verse  by  the  Rev. 
James  Davies,  held  that  fables  originated  in  Greece.  But 
this  opinion  seems  controvertible  on  every  side. 

Fable  is  found  at  a  remote  period  in  Greece.  One  of 
the  earliest  poets,  Hesiod  (circa  S00  B.  C),  quotes  the 
"Nightingale  and  the  Hawk."2  iEsop  is  generally  sup- 
posed to  have  lived  619-564  B.  C. 

But  to  make  animals  converse  is  not  natural  to  Greece, 
and  if  not  natural  to  that  people,  fable  can  scarcely  be 
indigenous  to  the  country.  On  the  other  hand  we  can 
understand  it  to  have  been  in  accord  with  the  people  of 
India.  That  animals  should  act,  reason  and  talk  like  men, 
is  so  contrary  to  universal  experience,  that  the  peculiar 
property  of  the  popular  fable  can  only  be  accounted  for 
by  the  belief  in  metempsychosis,  or  transmigration  of 
souls,  held  by  the  ancient  people  of  India. 

A  comparison  of  the  xEsopean   fables  with  the  Sanscrit 

lBabrii  Fabuloe  iEsopere,  &c,  1846;  2d  pt.  1859.  Both  parts 
translated  into  English  verse  by  Davies,  1851).  But  these  spurious 
fables  Mere  concocted  by  Minoides  Menas,  a  Greek,  who  sold  them 
with  the  manuscript  of  the  genuine  apologue  to  the  British  Museum! 

2  Works  and  Days. 


FABLES.  291 

collections  makes  it  seem  almost  indisputable  that  the 
Greeks  originally  derived  the  fable  from  India;  however 
difficult  it  may  now  be  to  point  out  the  particular  route  by 
which  it  came. 

Instances  have  been  elaborately  dwelt  on  by  writers  to 
prove  this  contention.  Take  the  European  story  of  how 
six  men  played  a  trick  upon  a  country  fellow  who  was 
carrying  a  lamb  to  market.  They  agreed  to  meet  him, 
one  by  one,  and  insist  that  it  was  a  dog  and  not  a  lamb  he 
was  carrying.  This  they  did,  and  the  rustic  was  so  dum- 
founded  by  their  successive  accusations  that  he  let  them 
carry  off  the  lamb.  In  this  form,  the  fable  seems  rather 
pointless,  but  turn  to  the  older  Sanscrit  version.  There 
the  victim  is  a  Brahman,  carrying  a  goat  for  sacrifice.  The 
robbers  agree  to  call  the  goat  a  dog.  jSTow  a  dog  is,  to  a 
Brahman,  an  abominable  thing.  When,  therefore,  for  the 
third  time  the  man  is  assured  he  is  carrying  a  dog,  he 
throws  it  down  and  flies  in  horror.  The  Brahman  creed 
gives  a  real  point  to  the  story. 

It  has  often  been  stated  that  the  "Pantchatantra,"  con- 
sisting of  five  books  after  the  manner  of  the  Pentateuch, 
is  the  earliest  collection  of  the  fables  of  India,  known  at 
present.  Its  date  is  uncertain  and,  though  attributed  to 
the  fifth  century  before  Christ,  was  doubtless  a  collection 
of  fables  then  already  popular.  The  Pantchatantra  and 
the  llitopadesa  (''wholesome  instruction"  or  "salutary 
"advice"),  or  some  antecedent  form  of  these  collections 
form  what  are  now  known  as  the  "Fables  of  Bidpai,"  a 
work  that  has  been  translated  into  a  great  number  of  lan- 
guages.    Two  curious  stories  are  told  as  to  how  the  first 


292  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

translation  was  made  by  Barzuyeh,  an  eminent  physician 
at  the  court  of  the  Persian  king  Khosru  Xushirvan,  who 
reigned  between  A.  D.  531  and  5  70. 

The  King  of  Persia  heard  that  there  existed  in  India 
a  book  full  of  wisdom,  and  Barzuyeh  was  sent  to  get  a 
copy,  which  he  did  by  surreptitious  methods,  and  only 
claimed  as  a  reward  permission  to  write  as  a  preface  an 
account  of  his  own  life  and  opinions.  This  shows  us,  says 
Max  Miiller,  "a  soul  dissatisfied  with  traditions  and  formu- 
"laries,  striving  after  truth,  and  finding  rest  only  where 
"many  other  seekers  after  truth  have  found  rest  before 
"and  after  him,  in  a  life  devoted  to  alleviating  the  sufTer- 
"ings  of  mankind."  * 

The  other  story  is  given  by  Firdausi,  in  the  "Shah 
"Xameh,"  according  to  which  the  physician  read  in  a  book 
that  there  existed  in  India,  trees  or  herbs  supplying  a 
medicine  by  which  the  dead  could  be  restored  to  life.  He 
was  sent  by  the  King  to  find  it,  and  after  a  year's  inquiries, 
was  told  what  was  really  indicated  were  "the  ancient 
"books  of  wisdom  preserved  in  India,  which  imparted  life 
"to  those  who  were  dead  in  their  folly  and  sins."  2  There- 
upon the  physician  translated  these  books,  and  one  of  them 
was  this  collection  of  fables,  the  Sanscrit  version  of  which 
is  known  as  "Kalilah  and  Dinmah,"  or  the  dullard  and 
the  cunning  one.  The  name  is  derived  from  those  of  two 
jackals  who  are  amongst  the  principal  actors  in  the  intro- 
duction. The  "Fables  of  Bidpai,"  however,  have  been  so 
much   altered    in   the   various   transformations   they   have 

1  Chips  from  a  German  Workshop:  Vol.  IV,  p.  152. 

2  Ditto,  p.    153. 


FABLES.  293 

undergone,  that  no  dependence  can  be  placed  on  the  strict 
originality  of  any  one  <>f  them.  Many  have  been  adopted 
into  the  "Gesta  Romanorum,"  and  some  eighteen  of  Lafon- 
taine's  fables  may  be  traced  directly  to  this  sonrce:  Lafon- 
taine  himself  acknowledging  ln's  indebtedness  to  the  work. 

Beanmont  and  Fletcher  used  one  of  his  stories  in  the 
comedy  of  "Women  Pleased;"  and  Massinger  made  the 
same  story  serve  in  his  play  entitled  "The  Guardian." 

The  earliest  English  version  of  the  fables  of  Bidpai,  lias 
been  edited  by  Joseph  Jacobs,  and  republished  in  London.1 
This  version  is  "a  distinct  literary  find."  This  version 
was  due  to  Sir  Thomas  North,  who  published  it  in  1570. 
It  was  but  a  translation  of  an  Italian  version  (1552)  by 
Doni;  taken  from  a  Spanish  version  (1493);  of  a  Latin 
version  (1270)  by  John  of  Capua;  who  translated  his 
edition  from  a  Hebrew  version  (about  1250)  by  Rabbi 
Joel ;  which  was  written  from  the  Arabic  version  (about 
750),  entitled  "Kalilah-Wa-Dimnah ;"  which  in  its  turn 
was  translated  from  an  old  Persian  version  by  Barzuyeh 
(570  A.  I))  ;  that  being  translated  from  the  Sanscrit 
(about  300  A.  D.).  Mr.  Jacobs,  in  his  edition,  gives  a 
genealogical  tree  showing  how  the  work  has  passed  through 
these  several  stages,  and  also  earlier  ones,  in  the  form  of 
"Buddhist  Birth-Stories"  in  Cingalese  (now  lost),  and  in 
Pali  (about  250  B.  C),  also  lost.  It  has  been  translated, 
it  appears,  into  thirty-eight  languages  in  one  hundred  and 
twelve  different  versions,  which  have  passed  into  one  hun- 
dred and  eighty  editions. 

Whence  these  fables  come,  before  Barzuyeh,  is  there- 

1  18S0. 


294  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

fore  very  doubtful.  The  variations  made  in  the  stories 
themselves,  according  to  the  country  in  which  they  were 
introduced,  is  undoubted.  Professor  Taylor  Lewis,  in  a 
magazine  article,  calls  attention  to  the  modifications  they 
have  received,  and  says:  "Some  pious  animal,  such  as  a 
"devout  jackal,  a  very  virtuous  lion,  in  one  place  a  very 
"pious  cat,  and  in  another  a  very  hypocritical  one,  who 
"makes  religion  a  cloak  for  her  atrocities,  is  quite  a  favorite 
"personification.  This  recluse  character  has  in  the  original 
"Pantehatantra  or  Indian  legend  quite  an  ascetic  aspect, 
"is  very  quietistic,  eats  no  flesh ;  in  other  words,  shows  the 
"predominance  of  Brahman  and  Buddhistic  ideas.  In  the 
"Persian  (ante-Islamic)  it  lias  more  of  the  Magian  look. 
"In  the  Arabic  the  pious  fox,  etc.,  is  an  orthodox  Mahom- 
"medan,  a  Nasek,  an  extraordinary  devotee  who  is  ever 
"attentive  to  the  call  of  the  muezzin,  says  extra  prayers, 
"quotes  the  Koran  and  makes  extra  pilgrimages  to  Mecca. 
"In  the  Greek  version  of  Simeon  Seth,  on  the  other  hand, 
"he  becomes  a  decided  monk  or  hermit;  to  accommodate 
"him  ablutions  are  turned  into  penance  and  sometimes  the 
"translator  renders  Arabic  phrases  by  literal  quotations 
"from  the  Scriptures.  Not  content  with  this,  Simeon 
"Seth  sometimes  makes  all  the  animals  talk  Homerically 
"and  parodies  in  this  way  entire  hexameters  from  the 
"  'Iliad'  or  the  'Odyssey.'  " 

It  has  been  said  that  iEsop  never  lived.  The  sugges- 
tion has  been  that  Lokman  and  .Esop  were  both  mythical, 
and  the  fables  attributed  to  them,  really  only  well  known 
stories  handed  down  from  age  to  age,  and  finally  collected, 
and  an  assumed  author's  name  attached. 


FABLES.  295 

Lokman,  a  celebrated  Arabian  Bage,  and  great  fabulist, 
has  been  identified  with  ^Esop.  Silvestre  de  Sacy  says 
many  pasages  of  his  life  were  evidently  borrowed  from  the 
legendary  story  of  ^Esop.  His  fables  were  translated  into 
Latin  in  1G15.  Lokman  is  mentioned  in  the  Koran,  and 
is  regarded  as  a  contemporary  of  David  and  Solomon. 
Others  allege  him  to  have  been  a  near  relation  of  Job;  and 
to  trace  the  matter  further,  suggestions  have  been  made  that 
these  fables  arc  some  of  the  lost  wisdom  of  Solomon;  but 
that  the  Solomon  in  question  was  no  other  than  Joseph, 
the  great  patriarch  in  the  time  of  Pharaoh ;  for  it  is  argued, 
^Esop,  Bidpai  and  Phsedrus  have  been  alleged  to  be  slaves, 
and  to  have  become  the  confidential  ministers  of  their  kings, 
and  was  not  Joseph  sold  into  Egypt,  and  did  he  not  become 
the  second  in  Egypt  after  Pharaoh?  Therefore,  Joseph, 
iEsop  and  the  rest,  were  all  one  and  the  same  person, 
whereby  the  fables  obtain  a  ''distinctly  antique  origin." 

One  writer  amusingly  says  that  the  modern  incredulity 
in  ancient  authors  is  a  necessary  result  of  modern  historical 
research ;  and  not  to  be  cavilled  at,  if  we  will  only  con- 
sider a  parallel  possibility  in  after  ages.  Who  believes,  he 
says,  in  Sam  Weller,  or  in  the  Clockmaker  ?  Yet  the  time 
may  come,  some  ages  hence,  when  each  of  these  worthies 
will  be  looked  upon  as  a  real  personage,  who  lived  in  the 
world,  and  delivered  from  his  own  mouth,  all  the  sage 
remarks  wbich  go  under  his  name. 

As  to  the  fabulist  of  greatest  renown,  iEsop,  it  is  notice- 
able, as  far  as  he  is  concerned,  that  whether  his  fables 
were  invented  by  himself,  or  as  has  been  suggested  by 
Socrates,  by  Solomon  or  by  Homer,  they  have  never  been 


296  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

excelled  for  brevity,  point  and  practical  good  sense.  Some 
of  his  fables  acquire  special  interest  when  the  use  is 
recalled  that  has  been  made  of  them  in  the  stormy  and 
difficult  period  of  Grecian  history.  It  is  related  that  the 
citizens  of  Agrigentum  were  warned  by  Stesichorus,  who 
nourished  about  six  hundred  years  B.  C,  against  the 
incroachments  of  Phalaris,  by  the  recital  of  the  "Horse 
"and  the  Stag,"  1  wherein  a  horse  asks  a  man  to  help  him 
to  punish  a  stag  that  has  damaged  a  pasture  in  which  the 
horse  ranged.  The  man  mounting  his  back  puts  a  bit  in  his 
mouth,  thus  instead  of  giving  the  horse  revenge,  making 
him  the  slave  of  man. 

Herodotus  tells  how  when  the  Ionians,2  who  had  rejected 
a  previous  invitation  of  Cyrus  to  join  him,  sent  ambassa- 
dors to  him,  after  his  success,  offering  him  terms,  the 
indignant  conqueror  gave  them  no  other  reply  than  the 
story  of  the  "Fisherman  Piping."  The  fish  would  not  come 
to  shore  Avhen  piped  to;  but  when  netted,  danced  and 
napped  about,  whereupon  the  fisherman  smiled  and  said: 
"Since  you  would  not  dance  when  I  piped,  I  will  have 
"none  of  your  dancing  now."  Whence  all  may  learn  that 
it  is  a  great  art  to  do  the  right  thing  at  the  right  time. 

According  to  Livy,  Menenius  Agrippa  quelled  an  insur- 
rection by  reciting  "The  Belly  and  the  Members  of  the 
"Body."3 

The  popularity  of  ^Esop's  "Fables"  among  the  Athen- 
ians was  unbounded.     They  arc  continually  referred  to  by 

1  The  longest  fragment  of  Stesichorus  preserved  is  only  six  lines  in 
length. 

2  Book  I.  chap.  141. 

3  Book   II,   chap.   32. 


FABLES. 


297 


their  Writers.  Socrates  in  prison  turned  them  into  verse, 
Phsedrus  produced  them  in  Latin  iambics,  and  Babrius 
in  Greek  choliambics. 

Phsedrus,  who  flourished  about  20  to  30  A.  D.,  was  orig- 
inally a  slave.  lie  left  ninety-seven  fables  in  iambic  verse, 
but  the  subjects  and  ideas  are  largely  borrowed  from  .Esop. 
Their  purity  of  style  has  been  much  praised. 

Babrius  was  a  Greek  fabulist,  supposed  to  have  lived  a 
short  time  previous  to  Augustus,  whose  work's  were  for  a 
long  time  lost.  They  have,  however,  come  to  the  knowledge 
of  modern  scholars  in  our  own  time.  lie  is  supposed  to 
have  lived  at  the  close  of  the  second  century  after  Christ. 

Leaving  the  ancient  fabulists  one  meets  with  the  names 
of  Gay,  Prior,  and  others,  but  they  are  largely  wrongly 
so  called.  To  a  great  extent  they  relate  admirable  stories 
in  verse.  They  are  delightful  reading,  but  lack  much  of 
the  pithiness  and  point  which  constitute  the  really  essential 
characteristic  of  fables. 

One  fabulist,  however,  requires  more  extended  notice. 
Lean  Lafontaine,  who  lived  1621-1695,  was  urged  by  his 
father  to  enter  the  Church,  but  he  found  it  unsuited  to  his 
tastes.  lie  was  a  dull,  spiritless  youth,  and  had  reached 
twenty-two,  before  he  manifested  a  spark  of  poetry.  At 
twenty-six  he  married,  to  please  his  father,  lived  with  his 
wife  a  few  years,  and  had  by  her  one  son.  lie  studied  the 
best  writings  of  the  ancients,  was  awarded  a  pension  of 
one  thousand  francs  from  Fouquot,  and  after  Fouqucfs 
fall  went  into  the  service  of  Henrietta,  wife  of  Monsieur, 
the  King's  brother.  Later  he  lived  at  Madame  Sabliere's 
for  twenty  years,  and  drifted  through  life  without  any  idea 


298  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

of  money.  lie  was  one  of  the  brightest  writers  of  the  age 
of  Louis  XIV.  His  fables  are  nearly  inimitable.  Long- 
fellow speaks  of  him  as  "never  misanthropical — never  out 
"of  humour  with  his  fellow-beings."  1  He  was  on  inti- 
mate terms  with  Moliere,  Boileau  and  Racine,  and  was 
known  as  "Le  Bon  Homme,"  for  he  was  "as  simple  as  the 
"heroes  of  his  own  fables." 

The  abbess  of  Paris  promised  to  provide  for  his  son. 
Lafontaine  met  the  son  in  society  for  many  years  and  was 
delighted  with  his  conversation.  When  told,  "He  is  your 
"son,"  he  genially  responded,    "Ah  !  I  am  very  glad  of  it." 

Being  urged  to  reconcile  himself  with  his  wife,  he  went 
to  her  country  residence  and  inquired  for  her.  The  door- 
keeper did  not  know  Lafontaine  and  gave  a  general  answer 
that  Madame  was  well.  Lafontaine  proceeded  to  a  friend's 
house,  where  he  stayed  for  several  days  and  returned  to 
Paris.  When  questioned  how  his  mission  had  succeeded, 
said :  "I  have  been  to  see  her,  but  I  did  not  find  her ;  she 
"is  well."  Lafontaine  published  the  first  six  books  of  his 
fables  in  1668,  the  subjects  being  mostly  taken  from  iEsop, 
Phaxlrus  and  Horace.  In  1678  a  second  edition  of  these 
six  books  was  published,  enriched  by  five  books  of  new 
fables.  In  1694  a  third  edition  appeared,  containing  one 
additional  book,  completing  the  collection. 

Among  the  interesting  facts  connected  with  fables,  un- 
doubtedly stand  the  various  editions  of  Gay's  "Fables"  and 
zEsop's  "Fables,"  illustrated  by  the  celebrated  wood  en- 
graver, Thomas  Bewick,  the  English  artist. 

Gay's  "Fables"  were  printed  by  T.   Saint  in  1779,  in 

1  Poets  and  Poetry  of  Europe:   Jean  de  la  Fontaine. 


FABLES.  299 

one  volume,  with  seventy  seven  cuts  of  fables  with  borders, 
and  thirty-five  vignettes.  For  the  tasteful  and  clever 
engraving  of  Jive  of  the  cuts,  one  being  "The  Huntsman 
"and  the  Hound,"  the  Royal  Society  of  Arts  presented 
Bewick  with  their  medal.  Some  of  the  cuts  included  in 
the  edition  of  Gay's  ''Fables/'  published  in  1779,  were 
thought  so  much  of  by  "my  master  Beilby,"  says  Bewick 
in  his  "Memoir,"  "that  he  in  my  name  sent  impressions 
"of  a  few  of  them  to  be  laid  before  the  Society  for  the 
"Encouragement  of  Arts,  and  I  obtained  a  premium."  The 
premium  amounted  to  £7.7.0,  and  lie  presented  the  money 
with  intense  gratification  to  his  mother. 

To  understand  how  fables  travel,  consider  how  the  story 
of  Perrette,  the  milkmaid,  who,  while  speculating  how, 
from  the  profit  to  be  derived  from  the  sale  of  a  pail  of 
milk  she  was  carrying,  she  would  ultimately  become 
wealthy,  capered  for  joy,  and  lost  all,  has  reached  its 
present  form.  The  fable  is  in  Lafontaine's  seventh  book, 
published,  therefore,  1G7S,  in  the  preface  to  which  Lafon- 
taine  says,  that  he  owes  the  largest  portion  of  his  fables 
to  "Pilpay,"  the  Indian  sage.  Max  Miiller,  in  his  essay, 
"On  the  Migration  of  Fables,"  1  has  selected  this  fable 
and  discusses  the  matter  fully.  He  quotes  the  version  in 
the  "Pantchatantra,"  where  the  milkmaid  and  her  pail  are 
replaced  by  a  Brahman  and  a  pot  of  rice;  and  follows  this 
with  the -version  in  the  "Hitopadesa,"  where  the  characters 
are  still  a  Brahman  and  a  pot  of  rice.  In  the  first,  of  these 
two,  the  Brahman,  musing  upon  his  future,  imagines  his 
wife  will  not  hear  an  order  that  he  will  issue,  and  says : 

1  Chips  from  a  German  Workshop,  Vol.  IV. 


300  HITHER    AXD    THITHER. 

"Then  I  get  up  and  give  her  such  a  hick;"  and  in  the 
second  he  imagines  that  his  wives  will  quarrel,  and  says : 
"I  shall  he  in  a  great  rage,  and  take  a  stick."  Thus  were 
the  pots  of  rice  broken. 

Max  Midler  asks,  how  did  the  fable  travel  to  France,  and 
how  was  the  Brahman  changed  to  a  brisk  milkmaid? 

The  next  to  the  "Hitopadesa"  version  is  the  Arabic 
"Kalilah  and  Dimnah."  Here  the  politer  religious  man 
only  chastises  his  son,  which,  perhaps  is  much  better  than 
beating  his  wives.  In  a  subsequent  Greek  text1  .we  have 
virtually  the  same  story — a  beggar  marries,  has  a  son,  and 
heating  him,  loses  the  honey  and  butter  which  gave  rise  to 
his  speculations.     Still  there  is  no  milkmaid. 

To  explain  how  the  fable  reached  Lafontaine,  is  to 
repeat  how  many  times  "Kalilah  and  Diurnalf'  has  been 
translated  and  retranslated.  After  the  conquest  of  Spain 
by  the  Mahommedans,  Arabic  literature  found  a  new  home 
in  Western  Em-ope,  and  in  1289  a  Spanish  translation  of 
the  fables  called  "Calila  e  Dynma"  was  published,  Bidpai 
being  changed  to  Bundobel.  This  was  turned  into  Latin 
verse  in  1313  by  Raimond  de  Beziers,  and  in  the  same  cen- 
tury into  Latin  verse  by  Baldo  under  the  title  "xEsopus 
alter."  The  fables  in  their  various  forms  appear  to  have 
been  exceedingly  popular.  They  were  introduced  into  ser- 
mons, homilies  and  works  on  morality,  and  became  so 
changed  as  they  passed  from  mouth  to  mouth  as  to  be 
hardly  recognizable.  In  a  Latin  book  called  "Dialogues 
"of  Creatures  Moralyscd,"  transacted  into  several  modern 
languages,  Midler  finds  the  fable  with,  for  the  first  time, 
the  milkmaid. 

1  "Stcphanites  and  Ichnelates." 


FABLES.  301 

One  more  point  may  be  mentioned.  With  the  rise  of  a 
spirit  of  inquiry  in  the  Middle  Ages,  arose  the  question 
why  certain  animals  wen-  always  depicted  with  certain 
traits  of  character,  e.  g.,  the  wolf,  the  fox,  the  cat,  the  bear, 
and  so  on,  each  always  betraying'  the  same  characteristics, 
under  whatever  different  circumstances. 

A  compiler  of  a  French  metrical 1  romance  gives  a 
quaint  answer: 

When  Adam  and  Eve  were  driven  out  of  Paradise  the 
Creator  in  compassion  gave  the  former  a  wand  and  told 
him  if  in  want  of  anything  to  go  to  the  seashore,  strike 
the  water  and  he  should  find  relief.  Accordingly,  the  pair 
went  on  the  sands,  and  Adam  struck  the  sea  with  his  wand. 
Immediately  there  appeared  a  lamb.  "There/'  said  he  to 
Eve,  ''take  care  of  the  animal,  for  as  it  grows  it  will  give 
"us  milk  and  cheese/'  Eve's  milk,  as  it  was  called,  was 
much  used  in  the  Middle  Ages.  Eve  was  envious  of  Adam's 
success  and  thought  she  would  get  a  better  lamb,  so  while 
he  was  not  looking,  she  struck  the  sea,  when  Out  came  a 
furious  wolf  who  seized  the  lamb  and  carried  it  off  into  the 
woods.  When  Eve  saw  this  she  cried  in  distress,  and 
Adam,  aroused,  took  the  wand  and  struck  the  sea  again. 
A  dog  sprang  out,  followed  the  wolf,  and  rescued  the  lamb. 
Eve  not  satisfied,  tried  her  fortune  again,  and  the  result 
was  the  appearance  of  a  fox.  Adam  and  Eve  went  on 
striking  alternately,  the  father  of  mankind  always  drawing 
animals  that  became  domesticated,  such  as  were  beneficial 
to  society,  but  Eve  always  drawing  forth  some  wild  and 
noxious  animal.  Thus  it  was  that  the  wolf  and  the  fox 
1  Renard. 


302  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

and  the  oilier  animals  "which  figure  in  the  fables  came  into 
the  world,  with  the  various  tempers  which  have  given  them 
their  celebrity. 

"From  the  high  position  which  such  writers  as  Lafon- 
taine,  Lessing  and  Gay  have  given  to  it  we  may,"  says 
a  writer  in  the  Cornhill  Magazine  in  I860,1  "look  back 
"upon  its  old  and  long  career,  as,  born  under  the  warm 
"sky  of  India,  it  crept  by  ways  unknown  to  the  classic 
"clime  of  Greece,  passed  thenee  less  obscurely  to  Latium, 
"and  wandered  onward  into  the  Middle  Ages  of  Europe, 
"there  to  meet  its  older  parent  from  its  far  distant  birth- 
"place ;"  and,  where  with  it,  it  later  took  mediawal  "society 
"by  surprise"  and  conquered  "a  more  remarkable  position 
"than  it  had  previously  held  either  in  the  East  or  in  the 
-West." 

1  The  History  of  a  Fable. 


Palestrina  s  Music. 


Palestrina's  Music. 


A  COMPLETE  copy  of  the  compositions    of    Pales- 
trina,1  in  thirty-three  folio  volumes,  has  been  pub- 
lished in  Germany,  and  deserves  a  few  words  of 
notice. 

Volumes  1  to  7  contain  two  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  motets,  of  which  some  are  in  twelve  parts,  proving  the 
wonderful  mastery  of  composition  to  which  this  great  com- 
poser attained.  Volumes  8  and  9  contain  one  hundred  and 
thirteen  hymns  and  offertories.  Volumes  10  to  24  are  de- 
voted to  his  masses,  written  in  four,  five,  six  and  eight 
parts.  In  the  eleventh  volume  is  given  the  celebrated 
"Missa  Papa.'  Marcelli,"  which  has  been  often  referred  to 
as  one  of  the  greatest  works  accomplished  by  this  writer. 

The  mass  known  as  the  "Papas  Marcelli"  is  described  by 
Edward  II.  Pember  as  the  mass  by  which  "all  felt  that  the 
"future  style  and  destiny  of  sacred  art  was  once  for  all 
"determined."  In  Mr.  Pember's  article  on  this  great  mass,2 
he  says  that  "Baini  likens  its  transcendent  excellence  to 
"that  of  the  relative  grandeur  of  the  thirty-third  canto  of 
"the  Inferno" ;  that  "Parvi,  contemporary  musical  copyist 
"at  the  Vatican,  transcribed  it  into  the  Chapel  collection 

1  Pierluigi  da  Palestrina's  Werke  :  Breitkopf  &  Hartel,  Leipzig, 
18G2,  etc. 

2  "Dictionary  of  Music  and  Musicians,"  Vol.  II. 

20 


306  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

"in  characters  larger  than  those  which  he  commonly 
"employed";  that  "the  Pope  ordered  a  special  performance 
"of  it  in  the  Apostolic  Chapel,  and  that,  at  the  close  of  the 
"service,  the  enraptured  Pontiff  declared  that  it  must  have 
"been  some  such  music  that  the  Apostle  of  the  Apocalypse 
"heard  sung  by  the  triumphant  hosts  of  angels  in  the  New 
''Jerusalem" — that,  "in  short,  there  was  a  general  agree- 
"ment  of  prelate  and  singer  that  Palestrina  had,  at  last, 
"produced  the  archetype  of  ecclesiastical  song." 

Some  have  expressed  an  opinion  that  certain  of  the 
remainder  of  Palestrina's  masses  are  entitled  to  even  more 
praise,  than  that  bestowed  on  the  "Papa1  Marcelli;"  but 
it  must  be  noticed  that,  while  the  "Papa?  Marcelli"  has 
been  frequently  performed  since  the  death  of  its  composer, 
the  masses  claimed  to  be  superior  have  never  been  used  in 
church  or  concert  hall. 

For  those  who  are  not  able  to  play  upon  the  organ  with- 
out the  aid  of  a  written  organ  accompaniment,  these  recon- 
dite works  in  four,  six,  eight,  ten  and  twelve  parts,  it  may 
be  good  news  that  there  is  in  popular  use  a  volume  of 
selections  from  Palestrina,  published  by  Novello,  and 
edited  by  J.  M.  Capes  and  V.  Kovello,  in  which  is  included 
the  "Papa?  Marcelli,"  with  such  an  organ  accompaniment. 
In  this  same  volume  are  included  three  other  of  his  best 
masses  as  Avell  as  some  motets.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that, 
before  long,  the  German  editions  of  the  complete  works  of 
Palestrina,  Bach,  Handel  and  other  great  composers  will 
be  published  in  some  such  similar  form,  for  the  delectation 
of  the  hundreds  of  choirs  and  organists  who  would  rejoice 
to  have  in  a  practical  and  available  form,  these  masterly 
productions  for  use  in  churches. 


palestrina's  music.  307 

Volumes  25  to  27  contain  a  series  of  lamentations, 
litanies,  motets,  psalms,  and  four-,  five-,  six-  and  eight-part 
renderings  of  the  Magnificat.  Volumes  28  and  29  con- 
tain the  celehrated  madrigals.  In  volumes  30  to  33  are 
included  a  variety  of  this  composer's  works  from  hoth  man- 
uscript and  printed  collections  in  the  archives  of  the  Pon- 
tifical Chapel,  the  Vatican  Library  and  other  places. 

The  life  of  Palestrina  was  by  no  means  unclouded. 
The  music  used  for  the  mass,  in  his  day  had  reached  almost 
to  the  point  of  a  scandal.  The  Pope  resolved  to  "reform 
"the  music  of  the  church  or  to  banish  it."  Fortunately 
for  his  contemporaries  and  those  who  lived  after  his  age, 
Palestrina  was  directed  to  compose  a  mass  which  would 
conform  to  a  pure  orthodox  standard.  The  above-men- 
tioned mass  of  Pope  Marcellus,  published  in  1665,  was  the 
result  of  this  commission,  and  it  is  pleasant  to  remember 
that  it  was  received  with  great  admiration.  It  is  still 
greater  pleasure  to  know  that  the  composer's  superiors,  on 
hearing  of  this  successful  work,  decided  to  retain  grand 
music  in  the  church  and  to  abolish  the  operatic  frippery 
which  had  led  to  so  serious  a  crisis. 

In  1585  Palestrina  wrote  a  motet  and  a  mass  in  such  a 
hurry  that  neither  proved  worthy  of  any  remembrance. 
As  Mr.  Pember  remarks,1  ''These  regrettable  productions 
"would  have  been  well  lost  to  sight  but  for  the  reckless  bru- 
tality of  Igino,2  who,  looking  only  to  what  money 
"they  would  fetch,  published  thorn  after  his  father's  death, 
"with  a  bold-faced  inscription  to  Clement  VIII."     These 

1  "Dictionary  of  Music  and  Musicians,"  Vol.  II. 
2  Igino  was  the  only  one  of  Palestrina's  sons  who  survived  him. 


308  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

unfortunate  compositions,  however,  were  more  than  atoned 
for  by  the  great  mass  of  "Assumpta  est  Maria  in 
"Ccelum,"  which  confirmed  Palestrina's  work  as  a  com- 
poser, and  was  very  greatly  esteemed  by  the  Pope.  Fortu- 
nately, a  copy  of  this  has  been  edited  for  the  use  of  the 
English  "Bach  Choir,"  by  W.  S.  Eockstro,  and  is  pub- 
lished by  Novello,  to  the  great  satisfaction  of  musicians 
and  lovers  of  real  church  music. 


Alexandre  Dumas. 


Alexandre  Dumas. 


THE  voluminous  author,  Alexandre  Dumas,  once 
boasted  that  he  was  the  author  of  one  thousand 
volumes  and  sixty  dramas.  How  he  turned  out 
the  amazing  quantity  of  manuscript  published  in  his  name 
is  one  of  the  unsolved  enigmas  of  literary  life.  He 
traveled  widely  and  leisurely,  ran  a  theatre  of  his  own,  and 
lived  luxuriously,  keeping'  almost  open  house.  Any  one 
of  these  amusements,  let  alone  all  three,  meant  a  serious 
expenditure  of  time,  yet  he  found  opportunity  to  write 
more  pages  of  travels,  dramas,  feuilletons  and  historical 
romances  than  any  other  writer  has  ever  been  known  to 
accomplish.  In  the  zenith  of  his  fame  he  is  reported,  in 
consideration  of  a  large  retaining  fee,  to  have  bound  him- 
self not  to  publish  more  than  thirty-five  volumes  in  any 
one  year.  The  mere  notion  of  writing,  and  still  worse,  of 
contracting  to  write,  a  three-volume  novel  every  month 
would  have  appalled  any  other  author,  but  to  bind  himself 
not  to  exceed  that  quantity  forms  a  unique  record. 

At  one  period  he  had  six  novels  in  course  of  piecemeal 
publication,  and  the  publishers  prudently  refused,  in  their 


312  HITHEK    AND    THITHER. 

own  interests,  to  accept  any  manuscript  not  in  Lis  own 
handwriting.  One  awestruck  thinker  on  this  problem  has 
asked,  not  unwisely,  how  any  one  mortal's  pen  could 
traverse  these  regions  of  space ;  the  reams,  not  realms,  of 
fancy  and  invention,  which  bear  the  signature  of  Alexandre 
Dumas.  The  methods  of  various  authors,  in  the  fine 
frenzy  of  literary  composition  have  been  a  subject  of  dis- 
cussion in  many  a  circle.  Miss  Charlotte  M.  Yonge,  who 
produced  over  one  hundred  works,  wrote  daily  for  about 
five  hours.  Anthony  Trollope  wrote  with  an  open  watch  in 
front  of  him  for  a  fixed  daily  period,  constraining  himself 
to  turn  out  a  certain  number  of  lines  each  quarter  of  an 
hour.  Lord  Beaconsfield  wrote  as  the  humor  seized  him, 
with  a  Berserker  rage,  dashing  off  quire  after  quire  of  his 
political  novels,  and  working  tirelessly  till  the  task  in  hand 
was  accomplished.  Southey  was  said  never  to  be  seen 
without  a  quill-pen  in  his  hand.  Albert  Barnes,  the  Phil- 
adelphia pastor,  ceased  writing  every  morning  at  9  o'clock, 
yet,  by  working  from  5  till  9,  he  completed  in  a  few 
years  sixteen  volumes  of  a  "commentary"  of  which  a 
quarter  of  a  million  Volumes  were  sold.  Peter  Bayle,  the 
author  of  the  great  five-volume  folio  dictionary  which  bears 
his  name,  told  his  biographer,  Des  Maizeaux,  that  from 
twenty  to  forty  he  worked  fourteen  hours  a  day  and  in 
fact,  never  knew  what  leisure  was.  Pliny,  the  elder,  was 
always  jotting  down  his  notes,  till  at  his  death  his  note- 
books numbered  one  hundred  and  sixty  volumes,  closely 
written  on  both  sides,  in  which  achievement  lie  was  almost 
paralleled  by  the  antiquary,  Thomas  Ilearne,  who  left 
behind  him  one  hundred  and  forty-five  small  octavo  vol- 


ALEXANDRE    DUMAS. 


313 


umes  of  notes,  he  having  made  it  a  rule  of  life  always  to 
have  a  note-book  in  his  pocket  in  which  to  jot  down 
"what  he  though t,  what  he  road,  what  he  saw  him- 
"self,  or  what  he  was  told  by  others."  Sir  Walter  Scott, 
besides  poems,  essays,  reviews  and  histories,  wrote  twenty- 
five  novels  in  twenty-five  years,  and  Samuel  Warren  wrote 
a  novel  of  five  hundred  pages  in  one-and-twenty  days. 
Joseph  Beaumont,  a  Royalist  fellow  ejected  from  Cam- 
bridge in  1644,  retired  to  his  old  home  at  Hadleigh,  and  in 
eleven  months  composed  a  poem  on  a  religions  subject, 
consisting  of  forty  thousand  lines,1  thus  achieving  the 
longest  poem  in  the  English  language;  and  Lope  de  Vega, 
"a  personification  of  celerity,"  left,  as  alleged,  twenty-one 
million  three  hundred  thousand  verses  in  print,  including 
over  two  thousand  original  dramas. 

Other  writers  have  been  as  slow  as  many  of  these  were 
rapid.  Of  Thomas  Gray,  the  poet,  Lord  Beaconsfield 
remarked  that  no  other  man  had  gone  to  his  grave  leaving 
so  great  a  name  behind  him,  but  carrying  so  small  a 
volume  under  his  arm.  Lord  Bacon  did  not  produce  his 
magnum  opus  till  he  was  sixty  years  of  age,  and  he  revised 
the  work  twelve  times  before  he  would  let  it  see  light. 
Jane  Austen  kept  her  manuscripts  in  hand  till  time  and 
many  perusals  satisfied  her  that  the  charm  of  recent  com- 
position was  dissolved,  and  then,  and  then  only,  would  she 
let  them  -go  to  a  publisher.  Edmund  Burke  printed  off 
each  of  his  principal  works  at  a  private  press  twice  before 
he  submitted  them  to  a  publisher,  and  Saint-Pierre  revised 
his  "Paul  and  Virginia"  nine  times  before  he  gave  it  to 
the  world.     Beranger  never  exceeded  fifteen  songs  in  a 

1  Psyche,  or  Love's  Mystery,     1G48.    It  contains  3S,922  lines. 


314  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

year,  Goldsmith  thought  ten  lines  a  day  good  progress 
when  writing  the  "Deserted  Village/'  and  George  Eliot, 
week  in  and  week  out  at  times,  only  accomplished  a  page 
a  day,  till  by  polishing  and  alterations  she  deemed  some 
favorite  character,  or  important  scene  properly  described. 
What  wonder,  then,  that  Alexandre  Dumas  was  charged 
with  accepting  the  work  of  other  writers  and  palming  it  off 
as  his  own.  The  charge  has  been  frequently  made,  notably 
by  Eugene  de  Mirecourt  in  his  "Fabrique  de  Romans  par 
"A.  Dumas  et  Compagnie,"1  as  well  as  by  M.  Querard,2 
who  has  gone  through  "the  one  thousand  volumes  and  sixty 
"dramas"  and  made  regular  lists  of  how  much  came  from 
the  pen  of  Dumas  himself  and  how  much  was  furnished  by 
industrious  collaborateurs.  According  to  Mr.  Percy  Fitz- 
gerald, in  his  "Life  and  Adventures  of  Dumas,"  his 
assistants,  in  particular  Messieurs  Maquet  and  Bourgeois, 
are  entitled  to  somewhere  about  seventy-five  to  eighty  per 
cent,  of  the  credit  earned  by  Dumas,  and  the  author  him- 
self to  some  small  proportion  only  of  the  remaining  twenty 
or  twenty-five  per  cent.  How  it  was  that  his  collaborateurs 
maintained  a  dignified  silence,  and  allowed  Dumas  to  run 
away  with  the  unbounded  praise  bestowed  upon  the  books, 
as  well  as,  apparently,  with  the  enormous  pecuniary  profits 
arising  from  this  literary  manufactory,  does  not  appear. 
Some  of  these  assistant  writers  have  published  books  in 
their  own  names,  which  fell  as  flat  as  ditch-water.  If 
we  are  to  believe  the  envious  pens  of  Dumas'  censorious 

1  Fabrique  de  Romans  Maison   Alexandre  Dumas   &   Cie.     Eugene 
de  Mirecourt.     Paris,  1S45. 

2  Les  supercheries  litteraires  dcvoilC-es  (2d  ed.    Paris,  1870). 


ALEXANDRE    DUMAS.  315 

critics,  when  they  worked  for  him  they  produced  hooks 
which  found  thousands  of  interested  renders,  though  when 
they  wrote  for  themselves  they  were  unable  to  produce  n 
romance  worth  the  trouble  of  reading.     It  is  universally 

admitted  that  Dumas  lived  most  extravagantly  and  spent 
money  like  water,  so  that  either  the  Maquets  and  others 
are  creatures  of  fancy,  or  Dumas  was  served  with  a  reticent 
faithfulness  never  before  nor  since  imagined.  It  was 
humorously  said  that  if  Dumas  were  admitted  to  the 
French  Academy,  so  alarming  were  the  numbers  of  heads 
and  hands  employed  in  his  factory,  that  he  would  have 
required  a  whole  bench  and  not  a  seat  only,  in  that  august 
assembly.  In  rapidity  of  production  and  quantity  of 
"copy"  he  exceeded  all  competitors  and  obtained  better 
returns  for  his  publishers  than  any  two  or  three  of 
his  comparatively  voluminous  rivals  combined.  For  one 
person  who  goes  in  for  a  course  of  G.  P.  R.  James,  Mrs. 
Gore,  diaries  Lever,  and  so  on,  probably  fifty  read  "The 
"Count  of  Monte  Cristo,"  "The  Three  Musketeers,"  "The 
"Queen's  Necklace"  and  other  novels,  justly  included  as 
component  parts  of  the  "cream"  of  Dumas'  writings. 

It  is  remarkable  that  he  was  nearly  forty  before  he  dis- 
covered the  vein  of  talent  which  made  his  reputation  and 
his  fortune,  the  first  of  which  will  doubtless  stick  to  his 
name,  the  latter  of  which  he  hopelessly  failed  to  retain. 

He  was  twenty-five  years  of  age  when,  in  1828,  ho  pro- 
duced his  first  successful  drama  and  for  fifteen  years  he 
was  very  industrious  as  a  playwright.  It  is  not  known  to 
everyone,  that  the  whole  English-speaking  world  owes  to 
Dumas    the    great    debt    of    a    "logical"    conclusion    to 


316  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

Shakespeare's  "Hamlet."  Notwithstanding  that  Dumas' 
compatriot,  Eugene  Sue,  has  exquisitely  apostrophized 
the  immortal  bard  as  "The  Great  William,"  others 
of  his  nationality  have  ridiculed  "Hamlet"  in  no  meas- 
ured terms.  When  Dumas  considered  the  matter,  all 
became  clear  in  a  moment.  Shakespeare's  method  was  at 
fault,  argal  if  Dumas  provided  a  "logical"  ending  all 
would  be  well  and  the  play  would  be  worthy  of  representa- 
tion at  his  own  private  theatre.  To  conceive  the  comedy 
was  an  inspiration ;  to  carry  it  out  the  work  of  a  few  hours 
only. 

Shakespeare  represented  Hamlet's  "native  hue  of  resolu- 
"tion  so  sicklied  o'er  with  the  pale  cast  of  thought"  that, 
while  hesitating  to  punish  the  guilty  king,  he  destroys 
Polonius,  Ophelia,  Guildenstern,  Rosencrantz,  Laertes  and 
the  Queen  before  he  rids  the  world  of  the  King  and  him- 
self. Dumas  saw  that  this  was  wrong,  and  provided  a 
"conclusion,"  in  which  the  ghost  takes  an  active  part.  That 
perturbed  spirit  having  failed  to  duly  stir  up  the  Prince 
for  four  acts,  and  feeling,  presumably,  that  there  is  a  time 
for  all  things,  is  at  last  himself  invoked  to  come  and 
straighten  things  out.  Although  the  Ghost  might  just  as 
well  have  acted  in  Act  I,  as  in  Act  V,  still  when  he  does 
bestir  himself,  he  bestirs  himself  effectively.  When  re- 
quested  to  come  and  see  the  murderers  die  he  opens  his 
budget  of  advice.  First  he  advises  Laertes  to  "pray 
"and  die,"  which  the  latter  forthwith  does.  Turning  to 
the  Queen  the  Ghost  proceeds  to  tell  "the  poor  lady" 
that  love  has  been  her  fault,  but  that  though  a  woman 
on    earth,  she   shall    be  a  queen  in  Heaven;  then,  when 


ALEXANDRE    DUMAS.  317 

he  begs  her  to  "hope  and  die"  the  Queen  turns  over 
and  expires.  The  King  fares  the  worst  of  all,  for  the 
angry  shade  tells  him  he  shall  be  a  companion  of  Satan 
and  his  woes  forever,  desiring  him  to  "despair  and  die," 
whereupon  the  King,  prudently  saying  nothing,  goes  to 
another  world.  Hamlet  then  asks  as  to  his  own  fate,  and 
the  Ghost  "logically"  and  obligingly  replies  that  he  "shall 
"live!" 

This  "adaptation"  and  many  dramas  founded  on  his  own 
novels  were  the  staple  productions  of  his  Theatre  Ilis- 
torique,  nor  till  he  was  forty  years  of  age  did  Dumas 
hit  on  that  vein  of  fiction  which  produced  for  him  his 
greatest  reputation  and  reward.  From  the  very  start  the 
stream  of  luck  he  struck  as  a  writer  of  historical 
romances,  had  the  force  of  a  torrent.  In  1844  he  com- 
menced an  almost  interminable  and  inexhaustible  series  of 
novels.  In  one  and  the  same  year  were  produced  his 
"The  Count  of  Monte  Cristo"  and  "The  Three  Muske- 
"tcers."  The  habit  of  writing  for  the  stage  had  given  him 
a  surprising  facility  of  composition.  Most  writers  find 
that  nothing  is  so  fatal  to  literary  success  as  to  make  a 
story  long,  but  Dumas  acted  in  the  direct  teeth  of  any 
such  rule,  and  once  he  had  started  a  story,  could  go  on,  liko 
Schcherezade,  for  one  thousand  and  one  chapters,  and 
then  start  afresh  with  the  same  characters,  keeping  up  an 
endless  variety  of  adventures,  scenes  and  perpetual  con- 
versation, yet  all  the  while  carrying  his  readers  breath- 
lessly along  with  his  story,  so  that  ;it  the  end.  when  the  end 
did  come,  the  only  feeling  of  regret  was,  that  there  were  no 
more  volumes  to  be  read.     This  was  peculiarly  the  case  in 


318  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

his  D'Artagnan  series.  What  other  four  characters  of 
fiction  can  be  compared  with  D'Artagnan,  the  typical 
adventurer  of  fiction  and  penniless  gentleman  of  Gascony, 
who  lives  through  novel  after  novel  in  company  with  that 
inimitable  trio  of  heroes,  Athos,  Porthos  and  Aram  is. 
whose  plots,  counterplots  and  escapades  in  company  with 
their  four  lackeys  are  so  impossible,  but  so  amusing,  and 
told,  moreover,  with  such  verisimilitude  that  one  is 
inclined  to  believe  it  all  true  history  not  elsewhere 
recorded.  We  grow  to  wonder  whether,  after  all,  these 
wonderful  men  did  not  really  almost  save  Charles  I.,  from 
execution,  did  not  really  carry  off  General  Monk  in  a  trunk 
and  if  they  were  not  able,  as  they  told  the  Cardinal,  "to 
"overturn  all  France,  and  even  all  Europe,  if  they 
"chose."1 

Their  early  adventures  are  full  of  the  wonderful  force 
of  four  young  heroes  at  twenty  years  of  age,  so  that  when 
the  first  series  of  events  was  closed  it  was  no  wonder  that 
Dumas  could  not  prevail  on  himself  to  let  them  fade  into 
oblivion.  But  it  was  bold  and  a  remarkable  piece  of 
literary  courage  to  take  up  the  thread  "Twenty  Years 
"After,"  in  a  second  novel  as  long  as  the  first;  and  show 
the  heroes  at  forty,  as  full  of  energy  and  pluck  as  when  but 
twenty  years  of  age.  The  heroes,  however,  having  been 
long  separated,  are  found  to  have  deep  individual  interests, 
so  that  the  four  plot  and  counterplot  between  themselves, 
two  siding  with  the  Court  and  two  with  the  Fronde.     And 

1  In  reality  Dumas  availed  himself  freely  of  Hie  "Memoirs  of 
Monsieur  D'Artagnan"  (died  l(i7.">),  written  by  Courtilz  de  San- 
dras  in  1700;  a  translation  of  which,  by  Ralph  Nevill,  was  published 
by  II.  S.  Nichols,  London,  1898. 


ALEXANDRE    DUMAS.  310 

yet  "Ten  Years  Later/'  in  a  mighty  history  filling  six 
octavo  volumes,  we  find  the  same  heroes  now  verging  on 
sixty,  involved  in  a  series  of  chances  ami  events  told  natur- 
ally and  full  of  entertainment.  In  this  novel,  the  main 
title  of  which  is  ''The  Vicomte  de  Bragelonne,"  we  find 
ourselves  in  the  society  of  Louis  XIV.,  Louise  de  la  Val- 
liere,  Madame  de  Montespan,  Fouquet  and  Colbert,  and 
were  it  not  that  Dumas  buries  the  four  lackeys  and  three 
of  the  four  heroes,  there  seems  no  reason  why  yet  another 
ten  volumes  should  not  have  been  devoted  to  accounts  of 
their  lives  and  sayings.  We  sigh  as  we  near  the  end. 
Athos  dies  from  a  broken  heart  on  receiving  the  news  of 
the  death  of  his  son;  Porthos  perishes  in  attempting  a 
task  worthy  of  Samson,  while  D'Artagnan  is  dismissed  by 
a  bullet,  just  as  he  had  been  presented  with  the  baton  of  a 
Marshal  of  France.  Poetical  justice  is  meted  out  by 
Dumas  in  leaving  Aramis,  the  "wily  intriguer,  senti- 
"mentalist  and  false  priest,"  to  live  and  repent  if  he  will. 
Well  did  Thackeray  write  of  these  wonders  of  fiction : 
"I  have  read  about  them  from  sunrise  to  sunset  with  the 
"utmost  contentment  of  mind.  They  have  passed  through 
"many  volumes — forty  ? — fifty  ?  I  wish,  for  my  part, 
"there  were  a  hundred  more.  I  would  never  tire  of  them 
"or  their  bravery  in  rescuing  prisoners,  punishing  ruffians 
"and  running  scoundrels  through  the  midriff  with  graceful 
"rapiers."  '  What  a  trio  were  Athos,  Porthos  and  Aramis, 
and  what  a  hero  was  D'Artagnan  !  A  list  of  the  historical 
characters  introduced  into  these  forty  volumes  would  fill  a 
volume.  May  everyone  who  has  not  read  the  D'Artagnan 
series,   the  Marie  Antoinette   romances   and,   best   of  all, 


320  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

"The  Count  of  Monte  Cristo,"  take  a  month's  holiday  and 
prepare  himself  for  an  enjoyment  and  harmless  pleasure 
not  easily  surpassed. 


' '  Of  the  Imitation  of  Christ. ' 

Who   Wrote  It? 


21 


"Of  the  Imitation  of  Christ." 

WHO   WROTE  IT  ? 


DID  not  inexorable  facts  contradict  us,  it  would  seem 
that  there  could  be  no  doubt,  as  to  who  were  the 
actual  authors  of  the  best-known  works  that  are 
in  everybody's  hands.  We  do  not  speak  here  of  the  Bible, 
and  the  disputed  questions,  whether  Moses  wrote  all  or 
any  parts  of  the  Pentateuch ;  whether  St.  Paul,  Apollos,  or 
some  other  person  wrote  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews.  Nor 
need  we  seek  to  answer  the  query  whether  or  not  the  half- 
educated  tinker,  John  Bunyan,  was  the  true  author  of 
''The  Pilgrim's  Progress,"  thereby  gaining  an  imperish- 
able fame.  ISTo  difficulty  exists  in  determining  who  is  the 
author  of  Vortigern,  but  who  shall  answer  beyond  dispute 
the  conundrum,  Who  was  the  writer  of  the  Poems  of 
Ossian?  The  wild  theories  that  Shakespeare  did  not  write 
his  immortal  plays ;  that  Homer  never  lived,  or  if  he  did, 
was  merely  a  collector  of  disjointed  popular  poems,  which 
he  welded  together  and  called  his  own ;  that  Gray's 
''Elegy"  is  merely  a  beautiful  mosaic  of  other  poets' 
thoughts;  and  so  on;  are  familiar  to  every  sufferer 
under   the   "critical"   views  of   the  very  learned   of  the 


324  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

last  and  present  centuries.  To  some  extent,  the  very 
fact  of  their  authorship  not  being  known,  has  kept  cer- 
tain books  "a  necessity  in  every  gentleman's  library." 
This  is  notably  the  case  in  the  instance  of  the  "Let- 
ters of  Junius."  The  letters  would  hardly  be  remem- 
bered to-day  but  for  the  burning  question,  "Who  wrote 
"them?"  Perhaps,  however,  the  strangest  page  of  literary 
history  relates  to  the  great  work  of  the  "Imitation  of 
"Christ."  "The  Imitation"  is  one  of  the  half-dozen  books 
of  which  the  greatest  number  of  copies  have  been 
sold;  and  probably,  next  to  the  Bible,  more  copies  of  it 
have  been  printed  than  of  any  other  book  ever  written.  It 
has  been  translated  into  every  modern  language,  and  cir- 
culated in  every  part  of  the  known  world ;  and  yet  for  two 
hundred  years  the  fiercest  of  debates  has  been  waged  as  to 
who  wrote  it.  No  more  furious  literary  war  has  been 
fought ;  not  only  in  volumes  containing  hundreds  of  pages, 
but  in  multitudinous  pamphlets  of  all  sorts  and  sizes,  con- 
taining answers,  rejoinders  and  sur-re joinders;  than  over 
the  dispute  as  to  whether  Thomas  A'Kempis  was  the  author 
of  this,  the  most  remarkable  religious  work  yet  penned. 
This  warfare  would  never  have  reached  its  actual  propor- 
tions, had  it  not  happened,  that  the  glory  of  the  authorship 
was  claimed  by  two  of  the  most  important  religious  orders, 
namely,  those  of  St.  Augustine  and  St.  Benedict.  To  have 
had  a  predecessor  in  the  order  capable  of  writing  such  a 
treatise  would  add  real  glory  to  the  society ;  hence  the 
earnestness  of  the  dispute  that  is  still  revived  about  every 
twenty  years,  but  to  which  it  seems  as  if  no  absolute  solu- 
tion could  bo  found. 


OF    THE    IMITATION    OF    CHRIST.  325 

Thomas  A'Kempis  was  horn  in  the  year  1380,  of  parents 
named  Hamercken,  at  a  village  called  Hempen,  in  the 
Diocese  of  Cologne,  not  far  from  Zwoll,  and  became  an 
Augustine  monk  in  the  monastery  of  Mount  Saint  Agnes 
in  1300,  when,  according  to  the  custom  of  the  times,  he 
became  known  as  Thomas  A'Kempis,  after  the  name  of  his 
birthplace.  Tic  became  a  priest  in  1413,  and  is  believed 
to  have  written  "The  Imitation"  a  year  later,  in  1414.  He 
lived  a  very  retired,  studious  life;  was  made  sub-prior  of 
the  monastery  in  1425,  and  lived  to  the  good  old  age  of 
ninety-one,  dying  in  the  year  1471.  Much  of  the  time  of 
the  monks  of  Saint,  Agnes  was  spent  in  copying  manu- 
scripts, and  Thomas  was  an  industrious  and  voluminous 
copyist  Three  manuscripts  in  his  own  handwriting  are 
in  existence.  Two  of  these,  dated  1441  and  1450,  are  in 
the  Royal  Library  at  Brussels,  and  a  third,  unsigned  and 
undated,  but  supposed  to  have  been  written  in  1417,  is  at 
Louvain.  The  manuscript  of  1441  contains  thirteen 
treatises,  the  first  four  of  which  are  what  we  know  as  "The 
"Imitation,"  though  in  a  different  order  from  the  usual 
one,  as  the  fourth  precedes  the  third.  The  remaining  nine 
treatises  are  of  similar  character  to  uThe  Imitation."  The 
manuscript  is  partly  parchment  and  partly  paper.1  Xow, 
as  Mr.  Leonard  A.  W  neatley2  has  pertinently  remarked,  it 
is  highly  improbable  that  a  mere  scribe  would  think  of  in- 
serting his  own  works  after  one  borrowed  from  another 
source,    especially   a   man    of   the   known   modesty   of   St. 

1  The  manuscript  of  1456  contains  thirteen  sermons  and  meditations. 
The  Louvain  manuscript  contains  thirty  sermons  to  Novices  and  the 
life  of  St.  Lydewig. 

-The  Story  of  the  "Imitatio  Christi." 


326  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

Thomas.  For  nearly  two  centuries  A'Kempis  was  held  by 
both  the  literary  and  religious  world  to  be  the  undisputed 
author,  and  sixteen  contemporary  witnesses  can  be  quoted 
as  vouching  that  he  was  "the  author  of  the  'De  Imita- 
"  'tione !'  "  that  "the  Brother  who  composed  it  is  called 
"Thomas,"  and  so  on;  while  a  translator  of  "The  Imita- 
tion," twenty-one  years  after  Thomas'  death,  categorically 
attributes  the  authorship  to  him. 

In  1604  one  Don  Pedro  Manriquez,  in  a  work  on  the 
preparation  for  the  Administration  of  Penance,  observed 
that  in  some  "Condones"  of  Bonaventura  were  long  pas- 
sages repeated  verbatim  in  the  "Imitation."  As  Buona- 
ventura  died  in  1273,  rather  more  than  one  hundred  years 
before  the  birth  of  A'Kempis,  this  allegation  created  a 
great  stir;  but  inasmuch  as  it  was  proved,  within  a  year, 
that  the  "Condones"  were  not  by  Bonaventura  at  all,  but 
were  written  nearly  two  centuries  later  than  alleged,  the 
subject  was  dismissed  from  discussion,  although  only  for 
a  very  short  period.  In  1605  a  Jesuit  Father  found  in 
the  library  of  the  convent  at  Arona,  near  Milan,  an  old, 
undated  copy  of  the  treatise,  with  a  title  to  this  effect: 
"Here  begin  the  chapters  of  the  first  book  by  the  Abbot 
"John  Gersen"  on  the  "Imitation  of  Christ,"  with  a  colo- 
phon at  the  end  expressing,  "Here  ends  the  fourth  and  last 
"book  of  the  Abbot  John  Gersen."  This  manuscript 
almost  immediately  fell  into  the  hands  of  an  antiquary, 
Constantino  Cajetan,  who,  according  to  Dean  Hook,  in  his 
ecclesiastical  biography,  "is  chiefly  celebrated  for  the 
"almost  insane  devotion  which  he  evinced  toward  the 
"Benedictine  Order."     He  rushed  into  print,  and  issued 


OF    THE    IMITATION    OF    CHRIST.  327 

it  from  the  Roman  press  as  the  work  of  the  venerable  man 
John  Gersen,  Abbot  of  the  Order  of  St.  Benedict  on  the 
"Imitation."  But  for  the  title  "venerable"  and  the  words 
''Order  of  St.  Benedict,"  not  a  word  of  authority  existed  in 
the  manuscript,  so  that  these  words  were  suppressed  in  a 
second  edition,  published  in  1018 ;  and  on  the  authority  of 
an  old  copy  printed  in  Venice  in  1501,  the  title-page  stated 
that  this  book  "was  not  written  by  John  Gersen,  but  by 
"John,  Abbot  of  Vercelli."  A  little  later  the  same 
antiquary  found  that  John  of  Vercelli  was  surnamed  de 
Canabaco,  upon  which  an  edition  was  put  forth  at  Augs- 
burg, in  1024,  with  the  "complete  title,"  ''Four  books  on 
"the  Imitation  of  Christ  by  the  great  and  venerable  ser- 
"vant  of  God,  John  Gersen,  of  Canabaco,  of  the  Order  of 
"St,  Benedict,  Abbot  of  Vercelli,  in  Italy." 

Apart  from  variations  in  the  spelling  of  Gersen's 
name,  it  further  turned  out  that  no  Abbot  of  Vercelli,  of 
the  name  of  Gersen,  nor  any  other,  could  be  shown  to 
have  existed,  who  would  represent  the  candidate  supported 
by  Cajetan.  It  was  then  claimed  that  the  true  author  was 
Chancellor  Gerson,  who  lived  1303-1429,  but,  as  the 
French  critic,  Eenan.  says,  "the  opinion  which  attributes 
"the  book  to  Gerson  is  not  at  all  to  be  sustained,"1  and  one 
strong  point  is  that  it  is  not  in  the  list  of  the  writings  of 
the  Chancellor,  drawn  up  by  his  own  brother.  Many  pas- 
sages, moreover,  in  "The  Imitation"  could  be  quoted  show- 
ing that  the  writer  was  a  monk;  while  Chancellor  Gerson 
Avas  not  one,  nor  did  he  even  live  in  a  community  of  reli- 
gious men.  In  1038  Cajetan,  however,  obtained  permis- 
sion from  the  Congregation  of  the  Index  to  print  the  "De 

1  Etudes  d'Histoire  Religieuse. 


328  IIITHEK    AND    THITHER. 

"Imitatione"  in  the  name  of  Gersen,  and  thereby,  as  he 
claimed,  established  the  claim  of  the  Benedictines  that  a 
member  of  their  order  was  the  author. 

A  little  later  a  new  trouble  arose,  for  it  was  announced 
that  Cardinal  Richelieu  was  about  to  bring  out  a  magnifi- 
cent copy  of  the  treatise,  and  then  raged  the  question,  to 
which  of  the  contending  parties  would  the  Cardinal  lend 
his  aid.  Pressure  was  brought  to  bear  from  both  sides, 
experts  were  consulted,  manuscripts  examined,  reports 
made,  and  endless  discussions  had,  but  the  Cardinal, 
with  a  deal  of  prudence,  brought  it  out  without  any  name 
at  all,1  and  so  probably  offended  both  parties,  but  aided 
neither.  Thereupon,  from  that  time  to  1652,  a  general  con- 
troversy ensued  between  the  two  orders.  Finally  appeals 
were  made  to  the  Parliament,  when  the  Augustinians 
proving  temporarily  victorious,  were  authorized  to  pub- 
lish the  work  under  the  name  of  Thomas  A'Kempis.2 

Altogether,  some  twenty-two  persons  have  been  named 
as  the  true  author,  but  the  claims  of  none  beyond  those  of 
A'Kempis  and  Gersen  merit  serious  discussion.  As 
recently  as  1881  one  Walton  Hilton,  a  Carthusian  monk, 
was  put  forward  in  Notes  and  Queries,  but  his  claim  will 
not  stand  close  investigation.  The  claim  of  A'Kempis 
seems  to  have  resisted  all  attacks,  and  we  may  fairly  con- 
clude, that  to  him  does  the  world  owe  this  helpful  book. 
One  writer  collected  together  a  long  list  of  testimonies  to 
the  value  of  "The  Imitation,"  wherein  it  was  curious  to 
notice  Catholics,  Wesleyans,  Presbyterians,  divines,  ph.il- 

1 1640. 
2 1G52. 


OF    TIIE    IMITATION    OF    CHRIST.  329 

osophcrs,  kings,  soldiers  and  the  thoughtful  of  all  sects, 
unanimously  bearing  witness  to  its  value,  and  to  how  they 
had  been  helped  by  it.  It  was  a  sound  remark,  that  it  is 
perhaps  well  that  the  hook  should  remain  anonymous,  for, 
owing  to  that  very  reason,  the  treatise  lives,  tinged  with 
the  thought  of  no  one  man  or  school,  but  remains  a  goodly 
heritage  belonging  to  all,  valued  by  all,  and  the  source  of 
delight  apart  from  sect  or  party. 

Among  the  innumerable  editions  of  this  work,  one  pub- 
lished in  Paris,  in  two  volumes,  deserves  special  descrip- 
tion. It  is  printed  from  the  text  of  the  edition  of  Michel 
de  Marillac,  dated  102 6.  Each  page  has  a  border  copied 
from  some  ancient  manuscript,  the  fac-similes  and  engrav- 
ings being  collected  from  upwards  of  three  hundred  and 
sixty  manuscripts  executed  between  the  sixth  and  the 
seventeenth  centuries.  They  are  admirably  executed  in 
chromo-lithography  by  Le  Mercier.  Five  whole-page 
chromo-lithographs  serve  as  frontispieces  to  the  entire 
work,  and  to  ench  of  the  four  books  into  which  the  treatise 
is  divided.  They  are  Louis  XIV.,  at  prayers;  Anne  of 
Brittany  praying,  accompanied  by  her  ladies  of  honor;  the 
education  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary;  the  Annunciation; 
and  the  Nativity.  These  last  four,  as  well  as  the  borders 
to  the  twelve  pages  of  preface,  are  copied  from  the  cele- 
brated Book  of  the  Hours  of  Anne  of  Brittany,  a  work 
of  the  sixteenth  century.  The  twelve  borders  are  illumina- 
tions from  the  calendar,  one  for  each  month  of  the  year, 
showing  the  labors  of  husbandmen  in  the  various  seasons ; 
the  May-pole  dance  in  May,  maidens  crushing  the  grapes 
with  the  feet  for  September,  and  shepherds  feeding  and 


330  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

killing  the  swine  for  November  and  December.  In  one 
beautiful  border,  from  a  manuscript  of  the  Koran,  written 
in  1422  by  Mohammed  the  son  of  Hadgi  Hassan,  is 
written  in  a  scroll  at  the  foot  of  the  page  in  Arabic, 
"Touch  not  these  pages  unless  with  pure  hands."  Many 
of  the  examples  copied  are  resplendent  with  the  quaint 
ideas  of  the  retired  and  rather  eccentric  artists  of  medi- 
a?val  monasteries.  In  one,  taken  from  a  "little  book  of 
"poetical  compositions  in  honor  of  the  Virgin,  collected 
"by  Jacques  Lelieur,"  preserved  in  the  public  library  of 
Rouen,  are  displayed  figures  of  the  Virgin  feeding  the 
Infant  Christ  with  a  bowl-spoon  as  long  as  the  body  of 
the  Holy  Child,  while  on  the  opposite  page  are  angels, 
one  of  whom  is  flying  upward  with  a  deceased  person  in  a 
basket  fastened  to  his  shoulders,  reminiscent  of  the  pictures 
of  an  Indian  mother  with  her  papoose.  Above  him,  on  two 
banks  of  clouds,  one  far  above  the  other,  are  two  angels, 
one  on  each  cloud  bank,  engaged  in  hoisting  human  beings 
in  a  basket,  by  means  of  a  roped  crane,  up  to  the  Father, 
who  is  drawn  at  the  top  of  the  border  in  a  center  of  glory. 

One  librarian,  whose  name  is  fortunately  not  recorded, 
desecrated  a  splendid  manuscript,  now  preserved  in  the 
Louvre  and  here  reproduced,  of  the  "Hours  of  the  Cross," 
dated  1493,  belonging  to  Charles  VIII.  and  Louis  XII. 
of  France,  by  impressing  his  library  stamp,  "Bibliothoca1 
"Itegia*,"  across  the  middle  of  its  exquisitely  illuminated 
title-page. 

The  borders,  of  the  index  of  manuscripts  and  printed 
books  reproduced  or  cited  in  this  charming  work,  contain 
the  figures  of  the  "Dances  of  Death,"  attributed  to  Jollat, 


OF    TTTE    IMITATION    OF    CHRIST.  331 

Beham  and  Holbein;  and  the  whole  is  usefully  supple- 
mented with   biographical   and   bibliographical   accounts, 

accompanied  by  portraits  of  John  Gersen,  the  Chancellor 
Gerson,  St.  Thomas  A'Kempis  and  Michael  do  Marillac, 
and  an  elaborate  history  of  the  "Ornamentation  of  Manu- 
scripts,"  the  latter  sumptuously  embellished  with  a  large 
number  of  handsome  capital  letters  collected  from  the 
manuscripts  put  under  contribution  in  this  interesting 
edition  of  "The  Imitation  of  Christ." 


History  Repeats  Itself. 


History  Repeats  Itself. 


AS  long  since  as  1719  a  tribe  of  the  Cabyles  (or 
Kabyles)  in  the  neighborhood  of  Morocco  and 
Algiers  were  giving  precisely  the  same  trouble  to 
civilized  nations  that  they  gave  in  the  year  1904  in  the 
case  of  Messrs.  Perdicaris  and  Varley.  In  October,  1719, 
the  Comtesse  de  Bonrke  was  proceeding  from  Cette  to  Bar- 
celona with  her  whole  family,  excepting  her  youngest  son, 
to  join  the  Comte  de  Bourke,  then  recently  appointed 
Ambassador  Extraordinary  to  the  Court  of  Sweden.  She 
proposed  to  join  him  at  Madrid,  but  on  October  25th  the 
vessel  in  which  she  was  sailing  was  captured  by  Algerian 
corsairs,  and  was  being  towed  to  Algiers  when  it  became 
separated  from  the  capturing  vessel  during  a  desperate 
storm  and  was  wrecked.  The  Comtesse  and  her  son,  with 
several  of  her  servants,  were  drowned,  but  the  daughter. 
Mile,  de  Bourke,  an  old  Abbe  and  a  man  servant  were 
made  prisoners  by  some  Moors,  who  finally  carried  them 
into  the  mountains  as  slaves.  Three  letters  which  Mile, 
de  Bourke  wrote  miscarried,  but  fortunately,  a  fourth  letter 
reached  the  French  Consul,  and  steps  were  immediately 
taken  to  procure  the  release  of  the  unfortunate  captives. 


336  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

The  Grand  Marabout  or  Priest  was  made  the  intermediary 
with  the  Governor  of  the  Mountains  and  other  chiefs,  who 
had  carried  off  these  subjects  of  France.  Negotiations  were 
tedious,  especially  as  the  Moors  were  willing  to  release  all 
excepting  Mile,  de  Bourke,  then  little  over  ten  years  of  age. 
They  insisted  on  retaining  her  that  she  might  be  made  the 
bride  of  the  son  of  "the  King  of  the  Mountains,"  whose  rank 
was  in  their  eyes  equal  to  that  of  anyone  in  France.  Ulti- 
mately, however,  they  were  all  released  in  consideration  of 
the  payment  of  a  sum  of  nine  hundred  piastres.  In  con- 
cluding this  bargain  the  mountaineers  declared  that  their 
consent  was  due  to  the  veneration  they  entertained  for  their 
Marabouts,  and  "did  not  originate  from  any  fear  of  the  Dey 
"of  Algiers."  The  story  of  the  shipwreck  of  the  Comtesse 
de  Bourke  is  related  in  full  in  the  "Mariner's  Chronicle," 
and  also  in  a  book  published  in  Paris  in  1721,  by  Father 
Francois  Comelin  and  others.  A  translation  of  the  his- 
tory of  this  particular  shipwreck,  as  related  in  this  French 
book,  is  to  be  found  in  the  Catholic  World  for  July,  1881. 
The  whole  matter  has  also  been  worked  up  into  an  excel- 
lently told  story,  entitled  "A  Modern  Telemachus," 
written  by  Miss  Charlotte  M.  Yonge,  and  published  in 
1886. 

It  was  undoubtedly  strange  to  read  in  1901  of  the  same 
people,  the  Cabyles  (who  are  apparently  renegade  Arabs 
and  Moors,  mixing  with  neither  of  those  peoples),  being 
engaged  in  almost  precisely  the  same  tricks;  and  to  find 
that  the  civilized  nations  have  again,  more  by  mediation 
very  carefully  pursued  than  by  any  other  means  available, 
been  able  to  rescue  persons  carried  into  captivity  by  these 
independent  mountain  tribes. 


A  Plea  for  Free  Libraries. 


A  Plea  for  Free  Libraries. 


FREE  libraries  at  the  present  day  are  important 
factors  in  the  system  of  public  education.  The  true 
position  of  free  libraries  can  be  stated  in  a  very 
few  lines.  The  case  of  the  city  of  Philadelphia  is  a 
proof  that  they  are  not  luxuries,  but  educational  necessities. 
The  city  is  expending  nearly  six  millions  of  dollars 
annually  for  the  maintenance  of  public  schools  of 
various  grades.  More  school  buildings  are  required  every 
year,  new  sites  have  to  be  purchased  and  buildings  erected 
in  large  numbers,  and  yet  the  accommodations  for  the 
children  are  not  sufficient.  What  is  the  purport  and  end 
of  this  education  \  To  teach  the  youth  of  the  city  that 
reading  is  as  important  for  the  mind  as  food  is  neces- 
sary for  the  body.  That  if  insufficient  food  is  taken,  their 
bodies  will  be  stunted  and  injured ;  that  if  insufficient 
education  (another  word  for  reading)  is  assimilated,  their 
chances  of  achieving  honorable  positions  in  business  or  in 
professional  careers  will  be  seriously  hindered.  What 
can  be  said  of  a  proposition  such  as  this:  "We,  the  city 
"authorities,  not  only  recommend  boys  and  girls  to  come 
"to  school,  but,  in  the  interests  of  the  comm unity,  we  com- 


340  HITHER    AND    THITHEK. 

"pel  them  so  to  do;  and  to  prove  the  sincerity  of  our  belief 
"we  are  spending  millions  a  year  with  the  main  object 
"of  teaching  them  the  advantages  of  reading.  We  train 
"them  up  to  desire  books  and  all  that  books  mean,  and 
"then,  when  they  are  sixteen  years  of  age,  take  them  ruth- 
lessly to  the  school  door,  thrust  them  outside  the  school 
"buildings  and  tell  them  'we  have  created  in  you  a  desire 
"  'for  knowledge,  we  have  shown  you  the  advantages  of 
"  'learning,  Ave  have  shown  you  how  it  will  help  you  to 
"  'make  good  progress  in  life,  and  there  we  leave  you.  Go 
"  'into  the  world  and  do  the  best  you  can !'  ' 

Some  fifty  or  sixty  years  ago  it  occurred  to  the  great 
municipalities  of  the  United  States  that  it  was  a  public 
duty  to  afford  to  their  citizens  the  opportunity  of  carrying 
on  their  education,  notwithstanding  that  their  school  days 
were  ended,  by  the  aid  of  free  libraries.  What  number 
of  the  million  and  a  half  of  the  inhabitants  of  Phila- 
delphia go  to  college?  Probably  considerably  less  than 
two  per  cent.  How  are  the  remainder  to  obtain  infor- 
mation on  the  thousand  and  one  questions  which  de- 
mand solution  in  business;  or  progress  in  life,  unless 
acceas  to  books  is  granted,  the  desire  and  need  for 
which  has  been  created  by  the  city's  rulers?  It  may  not 
be  amiss  to  call  to  mind  that  the  greater  part  of  a  person's 
education  is  not  what  is  learnt  and  acquired  during  a 
period  of  school  life,  but  that  which  is  accumulated  gradu- 
ally, year  by  year,  as  the  result  of  having  been  trained  to 
desire  an  increase  of  knowledge.  The  principal  charac- 
teristic of  many  of  the  greatest  men  of  the  world  lias 
been  that,  whilst  their  education  in  school  lias  been  slight, 


A    PLEA    FOR    FREE    LIBRARIES.  341 

llioir  natural  inclination  to  learn  has  been  strong  and  culti- 
vated. Thousands  of  the  foremost  of  the  leaders  of  the 
world  have  been  almost  self-taught.  This  is  true  with  the 
leaders  in  literature,  law,  religion  and  many  another  path 
of  life. 

It  is  with  pride,  therefore,  that  Philadelphia  points  to  its 
widespread  institution  "The  Free  Library."  The  system 
now  consists  of  the  Library  itself  on  Chestnut  street; 
fifteen  active  branches,  scattered  up  and  down  through 
the  city,  and  over  one  hundred  depositories  of  books,  known 
as  "Travelling  Libraries,"  on  account  of  their  being 
changed  every  few  months.  It  possesses  one  of  the  largest 
collections  of  embossed  books  for  the  blind  owned  by  any 
public  library,  and  it  has  collections  of  rare  books,  gradu- 
ally accumulated  or  presented  by  liberal  donors,  some  of 
them  so  rare  that  copies  of  the  volumes  are  not  to  be  found 
even  in  the  British  Museum.  The  patronage  of  the  Library 
and  its  branches  has  been  phenomenal.  The  Library  itself 
was  opened  to  the  public  in  March,  1S04,  in  two  small 
rooms  in  the  City  Hall,  with  a  nucleus  of  about  fifteen 
hundred  volumes.  By  the  end  of  IS 95  six  splendid 
branches,  which  had  been  opened  under  the  careful  man- 
agement of  the  Board  of  Education,  were  handed  over  to 
the  Free  Library.  Branch  after  branch  has  since  been 
added,  and  owing  to  the  munificent  gift  of  Mr.  Carnegie 
of  a  million  and  a  half  dollars,  the  number  of  branches  will 
soon  considerably  exceed  the  number  of  thirl  v.  Mr. 
P.  A.  B.  Widener  has  presented  one  branch,  Mr.  John 
Wanamaker  has  just  completed  another,  and  the  example 
set  by  these  citizens  is  likely  to  be  followed  by  others.     To 


342  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

round  out  the  work  of  the  city,  which  is  very  widely  scat- 
tered, the  system  will  be  none  too  big  when  it  consists  of  a 
large,  handsome,  well-ordered  main  library,  with  at  least 
forty  branches,  and  some  two  hundred  travelling  libraries. 
Nor  need  this  prospect  be  considered  far  off  from  accom- 
plishment. In  ten  years  the  Library  has  assumed  the  pro- 
portions above  described,  and  instead  of  fifteen  hundred,, 
it  owns  at  the  present  time,  over  two  hundred  and  sixty- 
six  thousand  volumes. 

The  Free  Library  possesses  a  very  large  collection  of 
books  on  Greek  and  Roman  architecture.  This  was 
gathered  together  after  a  careful  study  of  the  catalogue  of 
the  splendid  Avery  architectural  library  presented  to 
Columbia  University  by  Samuel  P.  Avery  in  memory  of 
his  son.  The  death  of  Mr.  Avery,  in  August,  1904,  was  a 
great  loss  to  booklovers.  It  has  also  a  rapidly  increasing, 
but  very  complete,  collection  of  photographic  fac-similes  of 
many  of  the  most  important  manuscripts  in  the  world,  in- 
cluding the  principal  codices  of  the  Bible;  the  earliest 
manuscripts  of  the  classic  writers,  such  as  Plautus  and 
Tacitus ;  the  quartos  and  folios  of  Shakespeare,  and  many 
another  supreme  artist  in  literature. 

One  great  feature  which  is  being  rapidly  developed  in 
the  library  field  of  Philadelphia  is  the  scheme  of  lectures 
for  the  purpose  of  bringing  the  knowledge  of  books  home 
to  the  people.  Not  only  are  courses  of  six  lectures  each 
delivered  in  various  parts  of  the  city  by  experts  in  the 
lecture  field,  but,  following  the  example  of  the  University 
Extension  methods,  a  system  of  "School  Extension  Lec- 
"tures"  for  the  young,  peculiar  to  the  Free  Library  of 
Philadelphia,  has  been  carried  on  in  various  branches. 


The   Value  of  Reading  Fiction. 


The  Value  of  Reading  Fiction. 


WHEX  glancing  over  the  pages  of  the  annual  reports 
issued  by  the  larger  free  libraries  in  the 
United  States,  and  the  tables  of  the  classes  of 
books  read,  many  points  worthy  of  earnest  thought  are 
suggested.  Naturally,  the  old  and  well-worn  question  of 
the  proportion  of  fiction  read  by  the  general  public,  as 
compared  with  books  on  special  lines  of  thought,  crops  up. 
This  is  continually  made  the  principal  ground  for  adverse 
criticism,  when  the  free  library  movement  is  discussed. 
It  is  entirely  overlooked  how  many  biographies  prove  that 
a  perusal — and  if  this  word  be  too  feeble,  a  devouring — 
of  books  of  romance  was  the  beginning  of  the  studies  of  a 
large  proportion  of  the  writers  who  have  risen  to  eminence. 
We  need  only  suggest  the  names  of  Southey,  Scott,  Chief 
Justice  Coleridge  and  many  others,  who  claimed  that  but 
for  their,  early  love  and  juvenile  assimilation  of  works  of 
romance,  they  would  never  have  achieved  the  important 
positions  in  literary  history  to  which  they  attained. 

It  seems  inconceivable  that  a  person  can  "take  himself 
"seriously"  when,  at  the  age  of  sixty,  he  sits  down  and 
says,  with  a  solemn  air:     "I  think  it  is  a  sad  thing  to 


346  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

"see  persons  reading  so  much  fiction  when  they  conld  be 
"persuaded  to  study  important  volumes  if  only  the  heads 
"of  libraries  would  direct  them  aright."  The  experiences 
of  any  such  talkers,  if  they  should  volunteer  suggestions 
to  the  average  reader  in  a  free  public  library,  would  be 
worth  recording.  Earnest  carers  for  the  proper  treatment 
of  books  have  been  known  to  offer  suggestions  to  readers 
in  public  libraries  not  to  moisten  their  fingers  when  turn- 
ing over  the  pages ;  yet,  instead  of  being  thanked  for  the 
suggestion,  they  have  been  brusquely  admonished  to  mind 
their  own  business. 

For  the  purpose  of  affording  easy  access  to  certain  lines 
of  reading,  it  became  necessary,  some  fifty  years  ago,  to 
make  classifications  of  books.  It  was  desired  that  every 
person  pursuing  a  particular  study  should  find  collected 
upon  contiguous  shelves,  books  relating  to  this  or  that  par- 
ticular topic.  It  is  common  knowledge  how  this  system 
of  classification  was  worked  out,  and  how  two  or  three 
leading  systems  of  classification  became  the  subject  of 
earnest  discussion  among  librarians. 

Whether  librarians  should  adopt  the  system  of  classifica- 
tion formulated  by  John  Edmands,  that  by  C.  A.  Cutter, 
or  that  by  Melvil  Dewey  was  a  comparatively  immaterial 
point,  so  far  as  the  public  was  concerned.  But  for  libra- 
rians it  was  a  serious  question,  how  and  where  to  shelve 
books  not  easily  assigned  to  the  classes  "Religion," 
"Sociology,"  "Useful  Arts,"  "Fine  Arts,"  "History," 
"Biography,"  "Travel,"  and  so  on  through  a  thousand  sub- 
divisions. What  was  the  best  way  of  dealing  with  llie 
tremendous  percentage  of  books  which  came  under  their 


THE    VALUE    OF    BEADING    FICTIOX.  347 

notice  for  classification,  but  which  would  not  legitimately 
go  into  any  one  of  the  above  divided  and  subdivided 
classifications  ?  To  aid  the  public  in  gaining  easy  access 
to  these  volumes,  many  libraries  decided  not  to  put 
them  under  their  legitimate  classifications  as  "Literature- 
"English-Fiction,"  "Literature-French-Fiction,"  etc.,  as 
this  would  scatter  them  throughout  the  library;  but 
to  put  them  all  into  a  single  section  designated 
"Fiction."  And  here  comes  the  real  question :  What  is 
"fiction,"  and  what  "fiction"  is  intrinsically  worthy  of 
perpetuation  and  circulation  by  free  libraries  ?  If  libra- 
rians were  endued  with  superhuman  intelligence,  and 
were  enabled  to  spend  the  time  and  money  that  would  be 
required  for  the  purpose,  they  could  differentiate  between 
"fiction"  and  "fiction,"  and  by  elimination  end  the  discus- 
sion, now  furiously  waged,  as  to  whether  too  much  fiction 
is  read  for  the  good  of  the  public. 

One  of  the  principal  objects  of  a  free  library  is  to 
create  the  habit  of  reading.  It  is  useless  at  this  period  of 
the  world  to  say  that  books  can  be  ignored.  Books  are  as 
large  a  part  of  life  and  progress  to-day  as  are  the  over- 
discussed  bacilli,  which  are  supposed  to  have  so  much  to 
do  wTith  our  existence.  We  may  or  wo  may  not  be  bene- 
fited, or  injured,  by  bacilli.  We  must  be  benefited  by  the 
recorded  thoughts  of  great  men. 

If  it  would  not  occupy  too  much  space,  it  would  be  a 
good  thing  to  name  some  good  round  five  hundred  volumes 
of  so-called  "fiction"  the  reading  of  which  would  result 
in  benefit  equal  to  that  which  would  be  obtained  by  the 
perusal  of  twice  that  number  of  solid,  hard  books  of  his- 
tory, travel  and  biography. 


348  HITHER    AND    THITHEE. 

Perhaps  a  few  examples  will  be  sufficient  for  our  pur- 
pose. A  young  person  taking  up  Defoe's  "New  Voyage 
"Around  the  World,"  and  following  it  with  the  aid  of  a 
modern  atlas,  would,  perhaps,  be  surprised  to  find  that  he 
learned  more  of  the  Philippine  Islands,  the  volcanoes  of 
the  Andes  and  the  tremendous  difficulty  of  crossing  from 
the  Pacific  to  the  Atlantic  than  from  the  carefully-prepared 
books  placed  before  him  during  the  course  of  his  school 
life. 

Should  a  "fiction-fiend"  take  up,  say,  Sir  Walter 
Besant's  "Armorel  of  Lyonnesse,"  when  he  lays  it  down 
he  will  find  that  he  knows  more  of  the  legends  of  the 
Arthurian  cycle  near  Cornwall,  England,  than  he  ever 
acquired  from  more  "solid  and  instructive"  books.  And 
beyond  the  mythical  story,  he  will  have  learned  a  vast  deal 
about  the  waters  of  that  neighborhood,  as  well  as  the  fauna, 
the  flora  and  the  habits  of  the  inhabitants. 

Should  he  next  take  from  a  free  library,  William 
Black's  "White  Wings,"  even  though  he  cannot  afford  to 
take  a  "trip  across"  and  spend  two  or  three  weeks  among 
the  Lochs  of  Scotland,  he  will,  if  he  will  follow  the  story 
with  a  map,  learn  much  of  the  west  side  of  Scotland  and 
its  wonderful  yachting  possibilities;  and  will  acquire  a 
more  definite  knowledge  of  the  neighborhood  than  he  could 
by  six  weeks'  study  in  one  of  our  higher  schools.  The 
same  inquirer  after  knowledge  will,  perhaps,  next  take 
up  Dumas'  novel  of  "The  Black  Tulip."  He  will  read 
the  novel  with  avidity,  but  he  will  say:  "How  is  it  that 
"the  story  of  the  De  Witts  has  always  been  told  to  me  as 
"a  case  of  two  brothers  murdered  by  a  mad  mob  ?  Where 


THE  VALUE  OF  HEADING  FICTION.  349 

"did  Dumas  get  his  idea  of  their  being  murdered  in 
"prison  ?"  No  better  proof  of  the  value  of  the  historical 
novel  could  be  given,  than  this  desire  for  more  nearly 
correct  information,  created  by  the  differences  in  the  story 
as  told  by  the  historian  and  the  novelist.  It  is  probable 
that  the  reader,  after  laying  down  the  novel,  will  come  to 
the  free  library  and  say:  "Can  I  see  Larned's  'Dictionary 
"  'of  Historical  Reference'  ?  And  can  I  borrow  Motley?" 
Should  he  do  so  he  will  read  a  great  deal  which,  in  all 
probability,  never  would  have  attracted  his  attention  had 
he  not  perused  the  despised  volume  of  "fiction." 

No  reader  of  modern  intelligence  hesitates  to  accept  the 
criticism  passed  on  "The  Marble  Faun" — that  it  is  the 
best  guide  to  Rome  ever  written.  A  modern  librarian 
would  record  the  reader  of  "The  Marble  Faun"  as  a  reader 
of  "fiction,"  whilst  he  would  put  down  a  person  who  took 
out  a  volume  of  Baedeker's  "Guide  to  Rome"  as  a  person 
studying  "travel."  The  absurdity  of  contrasting  these  two 
readers  only  requires  to  be  stated  to  afford  amusement  to 
a  person  who  thinks  upon  the  subject. 

Should  a  person  come  to  a  free  library  and  take  out. 
"The  Bell  of  St.  Paul's,"  by  Sir  Walter  Besant,  could 
any  honest  and  straightforward  person  maintain  that  the 
reader  would  not  get  a  better  idea  of  the  neighborhood  of 
the  Globe  Theatre,  and  the  localities  consecrated  by  the 
memory  of  William  Shakespeare  and  his  compatriots,  than 
he  would  get  from  reading  dry  and  earnestly-prepared 
descriptions  of  the  neighborhood,  placed  by  a  classitica- 
tionist  under  the  title  of  "JI istory"  or  ''Travel  and  Descrip- 
tion" ? 


350  HITHER    AND    THITHEE. 

A  great  many  persons  of  antique  age,  and  a  number  of 
boys  who  will  grow  to  be  tlie  grandfathers  of  a  future 
generation,  will,  if  honest,  own  that  their  first  studies  on 
the  matter  of  comets,  their  inconsequential  concussions 
with  other  bodies  during  their  swift  travels  through  space, 
their  arrivals  at  nowhere,  and  their  disappearance  into 
nowhere,  were  incited  by  reading  Jules  Verne's  "Hector 
"Servadac."  It  would  be  impossible  to  disprove — and, 
therefore,  possibly  may  be  considered  proved — that,  rather 
than  read  three  volumes  of  the  history  of  Queen  Anne,  a 
previously  unmstructed  but  information-hunting  reader 
would  do  better  to  study  Bulwer-Lytton's  "Devereux" ; 
that  if  he  wants  to  make  the  acquaintance  of  Swift,  Pope, 
Addison,  Steele,  Bolingbroke,  Colley  Cibber,  and  a  hun- 
dred and  one  persons  of  that  period,  he  can  do  so  better 
by  reading  this  novel,  than  by  reading  Hume  and  Smol- 
lett's histories  of  the  same  few  decades. 

Can  it  be  denied  that  a  reader  will  store  in  his  brain  a 
better  idea  of  Devonshire,  England,  by  reading  Blaek- 
niore's  Lorna  Doone" — of  which  one  who  should  know 
said :  "  'Lorna  Doone,'  to  a  Devonshire  man,  is  as  good 
"as  clotted  cream,  almost" — than  by  reading  the  curt 
notices  of  the  locality  given  in  a  gazetteer  ?  It  seems  incred- 
ible that  a  person  who  reads  a  history  should  bo  stated  to 
be  reading  a  good  book  and  a  book  worth  taking  out  from 
a  free  public  library;  whilst  his  co-reader,  who  takes  out 
George  Eliot's  "Eomola"  should  be  charged  with  wast- 
ing his  time  because  he  is  reading  a  book  of  "fiction."  The 
latter  will  have  a  more  fixed  idea  of  Savonarola  and  his 
period  than  the  ordinary  reader  of  a  "life"  of  the  great 
reformer. 


THE  VALUE  OF  READING  FICTION.  351 

A  person  reading  Dumas'  ten  volumes  of  ''The  Three 
"Musketeers,"  "Twenty  Years  After"  and  "The  Vicomte 
"de  Bragelonne"  will  be  more  deeply  inspired  to  read  the 
history  of  France,  and  especially  that  of  the  period  of 
Louis  XIV.,  than  if  lie  had  taken  any  number  of  pre- 
liminary canters  through  serious  histories. 

More  knowledge  can  be  acquired  of  the  times  of  the 
Countess  of  Derby  and  the  consequences  of  the  warfare 
that  was  carried  on  by  that  pugnacious  but  magnificent 
woman,  by  reading  Ainsworth's  "The  Leaguer  of 
"Lathom"  than  by  reading  any  history  of  that  particular 
period.  In  it  are  more  of  the  real  ins  and  outs  of  the 
civil  war  in  Lancaster  than  in  many  solid  but  not  alto- 
gether interesting  books  of  pure  history.  It  is  unneces- 
sary to  mention  such  books  as  Bulwer-Lytton's  "Harold" 
and  his  "The  Last  of  the  Barons."  If  you  want  to  teach 
persons  to  study  periods,  times  and  histories,  you  must 
start  them  on  a  plane  which  will  lead  them  to  study. 
A  boy  of  twelve,  a  lad  of  twenty,  and  a  man  of  thirty  are 
all  still  on  the  hunt  for  knowledge,  information  and 
development,  and  it  is  out  of  place  for  a  man  of  fifty  or 
sixty  years  of  age  to  sit  at  his  table  and  say :  "What  a  pity 
"it  is  that  people  do  not  take  out"  (at  the  age  of  twenty) 
"the 'books  in  which  I  have  learned  to  delight!" 

Most  young  persons  are  not  ready  to  take  out  such  books. 
They  have  yet  to  make  a  closer  acquaintance  with  Mal- 
lory,  Cervantes,  Scott  and  a  hundred  other  romance 
writers;  and  who  will  deny  that  these  writers  themselves 
were  romance  readers  before  their  general  education  was 
completed?     Who  can  get  a  better  idea  of  Andreas  llofcr 


352  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

than  the  fiction  lover  who  will  read  Miihlbach's  novel  of 
that  name  ?  Who  can  get  such  an  idea  of  the  "no-popery" 
riots  of  Lord  George  Gordon  and  the  hideous  period  of  the 
French  Revolution  as  those  avIio  read  "Barnaby  Rudge" 
and  "A  Tale  of  Two  Cities"  ?  Who  will  get  such  an  idea 
of  the  unhappy  life,  imprisonment  and  death  of  Mary  of 
Scots  as  the  reader  of  Scott's  "The  Abbot"  ?  In  the  notes 
to  this  novel  will  be  found  a  better  description  of  the 
escape  of  Queen  Mary  from  Loch  Leven  than  will  be  found 
in  any  "history."  Who  will  not  benefit  by  the  conception 
of  the  great  composer,  Mendelssohn,  given  in  the  novel 
"Charles  Auchester"  ?  Who  will  get  a  more  splendid  idea 
of  Rienzi  than  the  man  who  reads  Bulwer-Lytton's  novel 
of  that  name  I  Who  will  get  such  an  idea  of  Loch  Katrine 
and  the  glorious  Ellen's  Isle  as  the  man  who  studies  Scott's 
"The  Lady  of  the  Lake"  ?  Who  will  know  more  of  Wal- 
lace and  Bruce  than  the  peruser  of  "The  Scottish  Chiefs"  ? 
Who  will  have  such  a  good  idea  of  a  castle  raised  to  such  a 
height  of  magnificence,  that  it  was  capable  of  entertain- 
ing royalty  with  more  than  royal  hospitality,  and  which 
to-day  is  a  mere  shell  of  broken-down  ruin,  than  the 
reader  of  Scott's  "Kenilworth"  I  Who  will  get  a  better 
idea  of  the  industry  and  labor  of  persons  like  Xiccolo 
Porpora,  who  was  so  great  an  instructor  of  singers  that  he 
became  known  as  the  "greatest  singing-master  that  ever 
"lived,"  than  he  who  reads  "Consuelo,"  wherein  Porpora 
appears  as  the  master  of  Haydn  and  a  delightful  repre- 
sentation df  humanity? 

Truly  it  may  be  said  that  decriers  of  fiction-reading  are 
behind  the  age.     A  lot  of  the  stuff  that  is  classed  under 


THE  VALUE  OF  BEADING  FICTION".  353 

"fiction"  is  undoubtedly  beneath  contempt;  and  until 
librarians  can  issue  better  tables  of  circulation  and  dif- 
ferentiate between  "fiction"  and  "fiction,"  just  so  long  will 
the  wrong  idea  prevail  abroad  that  libraries  foster  fiction 
reading  when  "they  might  do  better  work." 

If  the  readers  of  volumes  taken  out  from  public  libraries 
do  nothing  but  obtain  amusement,  no  money  that  is  devoted 
to  their  maintenance  is  better  expended.  If  the  people 
are  provided  with  good  water,  healthy  reading,  and  open 
space  for  recreation,  cities  are  spending  money  in  a  most 
excellent  way.  Cranks  may  cry:  "Free  libraries  are  a 
"fad;"  "free  libraries  circulate  fiction;"  but  only  those 
who  can  lay  their  hands  on  their  hearts  and  honestly  state 
that  they  have  read  one-sixtieth  part  of  the  wholesome 
literature  which  makes  an  improved  man,  may  be  heard 
about  free  libraries.  Until  they  can  do  this,  let  them 
remember  the  old  adage,  "Look  to  your  own  coop,  and  then 
"find  fault  with  your  neighbors'  chickens." 


23 


Earnestness  a  Necessity 
for  Permanence. 


Earnestness  a  Necessity  for 
Permanence.1 


IN  its  baldest  sense,  the  statement  that  earnestness  is  a 
necessary  element  of  success  is  a  simple  truism. 
It  may  be  taken  as  beyond  dispute  that  nothing 
attains  permanency  which  has  not  been  conceived  in  care- 
ful thought,  gradually  developed,  and  finally  brought  to 
fruition  by  earnest  effort.  It  is  not  at  all  implied  that 
earnestness  will  necessarily  produce  permanence. 

Some  of  the  most  earnest  workers  have  beaten  the  wind 
and  put  their  energy,  strength  and  the  fullest  powers  of 
mind  to  accomplish  an  end  which  has  resulted  in  nothing 
more  valuable  than  a  pricked  bladder. 

Cotton  Mather  and  his  coadjutor,  the  minister  Noyes, 
bent  their  whole  minds  to  the  accomplishment  of  some- 
thing in  the  direction  of  the  suppression  of  witchcraft. 
Consider  the  whole  of  the  witchcraft,  or  rather  anti-witch- 
craft movement.  What  was  its  net  result  ?  The  production 
for  the  edification  of  bibliophiles  of  many  interesting, 
however  odd,  books  on  a  subject  which  nine  hundred  and 
1  A  paper  read  before  the  Philadelphia  "Browning  Society." 


358  HITHER   AND    THITHER. 

ninety-nine  persons  out  of  a  thousand  know  to  have  been 
a  matter  of  credulity  and  imagination.  If  we  had  but  the 
courage  to  bring  experience  to  bear  on  fads  as  they  arise 
in  the  world,  how  many  misbeliefs  would  fall  of  their 
own  weight.  Instead,  like  children  in  the  presence  of  a 
conjuror,  we  cry,  "All,  yes,  but  there  must  be  something 
"in  it,"  and  so  fallacies  and  frauds  are  coddled  into 
beliefs. 

No  great  result  will  ever  be  accomplished  without 
enthusiasm.  But  misapplied  enthusiasm  is  an  injury 
and  not  a  benefit. 

Charles  Dickens  has  defined  earnestness  as  being  some- 
thing that  involves  thoroughgoing  ardor  and  sincerity,  and 
Pascal  tells  us  that  earnestness  is  enthusiasm  tempered  by 
reason. 

An  assurance  or  proof  of  the  necessity  of  sincere  earnest- 
ness as  a  precursor  of  work  that  shall  become  permanent 
may  be  deduced  from  the  results  attained  by  the  novelist 
Nathaniel  Hawthorne.  He  had  not  what  might  be  called 
the  pen  of  a  ready  writer,  nor  did  he  throw  off  his  books 
and  stories  with  the  fire  and  fury  attributed  to  Benjamin 
Disraeli.  He  had  not  the  steady  peg-at-it  methods  of 
Anthony  Trollope;  he  had  not  the  dogged  so-many-hours- 
a-morning  methods  of  Sir  Walter  Scott.  His  attainment 
of  a  position  of  permanency  among  the  army  of  great 
writers  was  accomplished  through  painful  industry.  His 
earlier  writings  were  printed  here  and  there,  and  to  all 
appearances,  promised  to  have  but  a  fugitive  fame.  When 
his  "Twice  Told  Tales"  were  gathered  together,  the  revela- 
tion of  their  value  through  the  genial  and  lovable  review 


EARNESTNESS  A  NECESSITY  FOR  PERMANENCE.        359 

by  Longfellow  created  something  of  astonishment.  The 
story  of  how  he  was  pressed  by  his  friend  and  publisher  to 
give  to  the  world  "The  Scarlet  Letter"  only  continues  the 
story.  Hawthorne's  earnestness  consisted  in  thinking,  or 
rather  plodding,  over  his  stories  until  they  were  fully  ripe 
for  committal  to  paper.  He  himself  has  said  that  his 
stories  "growled  within  him"  and  slowly  took  form.  We 
are  not  concerned  with  arguing  whether  they  are  good  or 
bad,  great  or  small;  they  are  permanent.  Never  would 
they  have  become  so  but  for  the  earnestness  which  he  put 
into  his  work,  and  which  enabled  him  to  take  the  position 
of  a  great  writer. 

Probably  Samuel  Smiles,  in  his  "Self  Help,"  has 
adduced  no  stronger  proof  of  the  relation  of  earnestness  to 
permanence  than  in  his  account  of  the  work  of  Sir  William 
Herschel  and  his  sister  Caroline.  Herschel  played  an  oboe 
in  the  band  of  the  Durham  Militia ;  then  became  a  violin 
player  at  concerts;  then  an  organist,  and  then,  without 
assistance  from  tutors,  a  student  of  mathematics.  Fasci- 
nated by  the  study  of  the  heavens,  and  unable  to  purchase 
a  telescope  from  want  of  means,  he  made  his  own  instru- 
ments, working  with  a  patience  and  perseverance  hardly 
ever  excelled.  Alternately  taking  a  turn  at  the  oboe  and  a 
turn  at  the  observation  of  the  heavens,  he  was  rewarded 
by  discovering  the  planet  Uranus  or  Georgium  Sidus. 

Smiles  remarks  that  "so  gentle  and  patient,  and  withal 
"so   distinguished   and   successful   a   follower  of  science 
"under  difficulties,  perhaps  cannot  be  found  in  the  entire 
"history  of  biography."  1 
1  Self-Help,  chap.  v. 


360  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

The  discussion  Lord  Bacon  versus  Shakespeare  is  of 
little  importance  (although,  by  the  by,  Lord  Bacon's  earn- 
estness in  collecting  undeclared  dividends  for  his  own 
private  pocket  has  left  him  a  permanent  record  which  few 
will  envy),  nor  is  it  probable  that  the  earnestness  of  Delia 
Bacon  will  result  in  anything  permanent,  but  may  rather 
be  quoted  as  an  example  of  misplaced  enthusiasm  or 
energy.  But  nothing  but  earnestness  in  seeking  for  the 
best  plots,  and  earnestness  in  his  work  as  a  dramatist, 
could  have  achieved  for  the  immortal  poet,  William  Shake- 
speare, the  permanent  position  he  has  attained. 

We  know  how  nearly  the  true  Shakespeare  was  lost  to 
the  world.  We  know  how  his  best  plays  were  tortured  and 
distorted  by  the  butchers  who  beneath  a  claim  of  improve- 
ment, temporarily  mutilated  the  beauty  of  their  whole- 
souled  form,  but  whose  weapons  were  insufficient  to  destroy 
either  their  innate  strength  or  their  innate  life.  So  great 
was  their  strength,  so  magnificent  their  poetical  physique, 
that  like  a  tree  that  has  been  bruised,  but  recovers  itself 
with  time  and  care,  Shakespeare's  plays  have  happily  in 
our  days  been  restored  to  their  pristine  dignity. 

It  is  almost  incredible  that  such  a  drama  as  "Law 
"Against  Lovers,"1  by  Sir  William  Davenant,  now  rele- 
gated to  oblivion,  should  ever  have  been  tolerated.  This 
play  is  a  mixture  of  Shakespeare's  "Measure  for  Measure" 
and  "Much  Ado  About  Nothing,"  and  where  the  language 
of  Shakespeare  "is  rough  or  obsolete,"  Davenant,  we  are 
told,  "has  taken  care  to  polish  it."    He,  in  his  "Macbeth,"2 

1  Produced  February  18,  1662. 
24to.  1673,  1687,  1710. 


EARNESTNESS  A  NECESSITY  FOE  PERMANENCE.       361 

"adapted"  Shakespeare's  tragedy?  With  Dryden  he  pro- 
duced an  interpolated  version  of  Shakespeare's  "Tem- 
pest/'1 into  which  they  introduced  Hippolito  as  "one  that 
"never  saw  a  woman,"  as  a  foil  to  the  incomparable 
Miranda,  the  daughter  of  Prospero,  and  further  desecrated 
the  immortal  play  by  giving  Caliban,  a  sister  Sycorax,  one 
of  "two  monsters  of  the  isle."2 

What  shall  be  said  of  John  Lacy's;  "Sawny  the  Scot,"3 
from  Shakespeare's  "Taming  of  the  Shrew,"  in  which 
Padua  becomes  London,  Grumio  is  turned  into  Sawny, 
and  the  fifth  act  is  almost  altogether  new  ?  The  writer 
is  old  enough  to  remember  with  joy  the  reproduction  on  the 
stage  of  the  Princess'  Theatre,  of  "Richard  III.,"  by 
Charles  Kean,  when  he  abolished  Colley  Cibber ;  giving  to 
delighted  Londoners,  Shakespeare  in  the  original,  after 
it  had  been  long  forgotten,  by  the  admirers  of  the  clap- 
trap, which  had  taken  the  place  of  its  sturdy  magnificence. 

Shakespeare's  work  was  the  product  of  earnestness,  and 
this  earnestness  has  made  the  work  permanent.  At  least 
such  it  would  seem  would  be  the  judgment  of  all  thinking 
literary  persons  at  the  present  time.  Charles  Kean  and 
Samuel  Phelps  deserve  a  world  of  praise  for  their  restora- 
tion of  Shakespeare's  text  in  their  magnificent  series  of 
Shakespearean  revivals. 

To  take  another  illustration,  John  Milton  undoubtedly 

1Pepys  states  it  was  produced  November  7,  1667,  but  it  does  not 
appear  in  the  Davenant  folio. 

2  The  Rivals  (4to.  1668)  is  another  of  Davenant's  alterations,  being 
a  rendition  of  The  Two  Noble  Kinsmen.  Davenant  and  Dryden  have 
also  been  accused  of  a  contemptible  version  of  Julius  Ciesar  ( 12mo. 
1719),  but  the  charge  cannot  be  proven. 

•  4to.  1698,  1708,  1714. 


362  HITHEE    AND    THITHER. 

was  an  earnest  man,  and  whilst  no  comment  or  observation 
need  be  made  on  his  political  or  religious  opinions,  the 
necessity  of  earnestness  to  ensure  permanence,  and  inci- 
dentally the  fact  that  earnestness  does  not  always  involve 
the  attainment  of  success,  is  shown  by  the  facts  connected 
with  his  "Paradise  Lost." 

Do  all  or  many  feel  how  great  this  epic  is,  or  thor- 
oughly realize  that  it  must  have  been  the  product  of  an 
almost  unequalled  earnestness?  Admirable  as  were  the 
proportions  of  his  work,  they  formed  no  protection  against 
the  almost  certainty  of  its  failure  to  take  a  place  amongst 
the  great  writings  of  the  world.  He  sold  the  manuscript 
for  a  bagatelle.  It  failed  to  attract  general  attention  when 
first  issued  from  the  press,  and  when  Tonson  secured  the 
rights  of  copyright,  in  so  far  as  they  remained  in  the  first 
publisher,  what  a  risk  he  ran!  The  first  edition  (S.  Sim- 
mons) had  appeared  in  1667,  and  before  it  was  sold  off, 
the  printer  had  given  it  eight  title  pages,  as  "whets"  to 
the  public  appetite.  Tonson  secured  half  rights  in  1683, 
and  whole  rights  in  1690.  The  work  increasing  in  popu- 
larity, Tonson  had  the  adventitious  personal  benefits  and 
Milton  the  permanence.1 

Some  of  the  greatest  artists  of  the  world  have  enforced 
the  lesson  that  earnestness  is  a  necessity.  Salvini  said 
that  you  must  "study,  study,  study,"  and  that  all  the 
genius  in  the  world  would  not  help  anyone  in  any  art 
unless  he  became  a  hard  student.  Salvini  confessed,  as 
to  himself,  that  it  had  taken  him  years  to  master  a  single 

1  The  second  edition   Simmons,    1674;    third  edition,   1678;    fourth 
edition  (Tonson),  1688;  fifth  edition,  1692,  etc. 


EARNESTNESS  A  NECESSITY  FOR  PERMANENCE.       363 

part.  Garrick,  when  questioned  by  a  bishop  how  the 
actor  could  make  people  look  on  and  regard  a  made-up 
story  as  true,  whilst  the  bishop  had  difficulty  in  making 
people  believe  the  real  truth,  answered  sarcastically,  though 
with  a  deal  of  truth:  "Is  it  not,  my  lord,  that  you 
"preach  the  truth  as  if  you  did  not  believe  it,  while  I  act 
"that  which  is  not  true  as  if  I  did  believe  it  ?" 

Shiftlessness  is  the  very  opposite  of  earnestness,  and  is 
it  deniable  that  shiftlessness  is  the  cause  of  much  failure  \ 

How  did  Charles  Lamb  comment  on  Samuel  Taylor 
Coleridge?  "He  is  an  archangel  a  little  damaged." 
When  we  think  of  what  Coleridge  was  and  what  he  might 
have  been,  we  admit  that  there  are  few  sadder  pictures  in 
the  whole  gallery  of  English  literature.  What  was  it  he 
lacked  ?  Earnestness !  The  books  he  was  going  to  write 
would  fill  pages  by  their  mere  titles.  It  has  been  not 
unpleasantly  remarked  that  the  world  is  full  of  unsuccess- 
ful men  who  have  spent  their  lives  "letting  empty  buckets 
"down  into  empty  wells." 

Bulwer  Lytton  says  that  "the  man  who  has  acquired  the 
"habit  of  study,  though  only  for  one  hour  every  day  in  the 
"year,  and  keeps  to  the  one  thing  studied  until  it  is  mas- 
tered, will  be  startled  to  see  the  way  he  has  made  at  the 
"end  of  a  twelvemonth." 

Is  not  this  saying,  in  another  form,  that  permanence 
cannot  be  achieved  without  earnestness  ?  Franklin  cried : 
"Stand  firm,  don't  flutter;"  in  other  words,  be  earnest! 
Force  concentration. 

"  Whate'er  your  forte,  to  that  jour  zeal  confine  ; 
"Let  all  your  efforts  there  concentered  shine." 


364  HITHER    AND    THITHER. 

The  very  opposite  to  the  conduct  of  Coleridge  is  the 
advice  of  Goethe : 

"Are  you  in  earnest?  Seize  this  very  minute, 
"What  you  can  do,  or  dream  you  can,  begin  it."1 

An  enormous  proportion  of  the  work  of  life  that  is 
injured,  proves  useless,  or  results  in  small  ends,  comes  from 
hurry.  "Hurry  not  only  spoils  work,"  says  Lubbock,  "but 
"spoils  life  also." 

Earnestness  that  accomplishes  success  and  permanence 
must  be  thoroughgoing.  That  is  not  earnestness  which 
shows  itself  in  hair-splitting,  in  doing  over  minutely  this, 
that  or  the  other  work,  when  a  bolder  method  would  do 
it  thoroughly,  do  it  well,  and  avoid  a  waste  of  time.  What 
is  the  difference  between  a  great  painter  of  scenes  for  the 
stage  and  a  pre-Raphaelite  artist  ? 

The  scenic  artist  works  with  intense  earnestness.  The 
result  is  the  production  on  the  stage  of  a  magnificent  bit  of 
color;  a  taste  delightful  to  the  eye.  It  has,  however,  no 
enduring  quality,  but  is  used,  applauded  generally,  and  in 
a  very  short  period  of  time  put  on  one  side  forever. 

The  pre-Raphaelite  painter,  probably,  has  not  put  more 
earnestness  into  his  work,  but  he  has  deliberately  planned 
to  do  something  lasting,  whether  it  results  in  canvasses, 
such  as  those  by  Rossetti ;  or  "The  Light  of  the  World," 
and  the  "Two  Gentlemen  of  Verona,"  by  Holman  Hunt,  or 
not.  Earnestness  has  been  expended  with  a  view  to  perma- 
nence. 

When  all  is  said  and  done,  what  is  here  proved  ?  This 
only,  that  the  statement  "earnestness  is  a  necessity  for 
"permanence"  is  a  simple  truism. 

1  Faust. 


Index. 


ABBOT,  The,  see  Scott. 
Abduction,    see    History    Re- 
peats  Itself. 
Absolution,  see  Confession. 
Adam  and  Eve,  as  two  men. ...   38 

fall  of,  on  Friday 276 

story  of   301 

Addison,   Joseph    54 

in  Devereux    56,  350 

in  Henry  Esmond 56 

-<Eneid,  see  Virgil. 

JEsop,  a  mythical  person 294 

his     Fables,    Babrius'    verse 

form  of    297 

illustrated   editions   of.... 298 
Phaedrus'  indebtedness  to.. 297 

popularity  of    297 

Socrates'  verse  form  of... 297 
identified  with   Lokman   and 

Joseph    295 

Adventurer,   The    58 

contributors  to 58 

story    in,    founded    on    Gay's 

life    58 

Adventubes  of  Robinson 

Cbusoe,  The 155 

see  also  Defoe. 
Advertising,    methods    of   John 

Newberry    84 

Aglio.Mons.  and  Kins:sborough.210 
Ainsworth,  W.  H.,  his  Leaguer 

of  Lathom  351 

Alcuin,  his  definition  of  herbs.   78 
Alexander  II.,  Codex  Sinaiticus, 

presented  to    203 

Alexandbe  Dumas  309 

see  also  Dumas. 


All  Fooles,  see  Chapman. 

Alphabet-books    81 

Alpine    flowers,    see   Handbook 
of. 

Amazon,  loss  of 280 

Ambrosian    Library,    its    Ter- 
ence manuscript 185 

Americans,     as    lost    tribe     of 
Manasseh   6 

Andreas    Hofer,  see    Miihlbach. 

Anfange  der  Druckerkunst,  and 
playing  cards    46 

Anglo-Saxons,    see     Ten    Lost 
Tribes. 

Animals,  characters  of 301 

in  fables 294 

Annals,  different  to  histories . .   33 

Anne   Boleyn,  mourning    worn 
by  Henry  VIII 268 

Ansgar,    St.,     and    the    Biblia 
Pauperum    48 

Anstey,    F.,    his    Tinted  Venus, 
source  of 35 

Antiquities     of      Mexico,     see 
Kingsborough. 

Ape  and  shoemaker,  story  of . .   26 

Arabia,  mourning  customs. ..  .264 

Aristotle,   quoted 251 

Arkite    Temple    offerings    and 
Hot  cross  buns 282 

Armorel  of  Lyonnesse,  see  Be- 
sant. 

Armorica,  Arthurian  legends  in. 119 

Arnim,  Grafin  von,  her  Eliza- 
beth    and     her       German 

Garden    45 

her  Solitary  Summer 45 


366 


INDEX. 


Arnold,  Matthew,  his  Tristram 

and  Iseult,  source  of 118 

Ars  Moriendi   47 

where   reproduced    47 

Art  exhibition,   satirical 59 

Art     Treasures,    see    Few    Art 

Treasures,  A. 
Arthur,    King,    legends    of,    in 

Armorel  of  Lyonnesse ....  348 
Arthur,    Morte    d',    see    Morte 

Darthur. 
Arthurian    legends,    see    Morte 

Darthur. 
Arts  au  Moyen  Age,  see  Middle 

Ages. 
Ascham,     Roger,     his      Schole 

Master    81 

quoted   117 

his  Toxophilus   117 

on  immorality  of  Morte  Dar- 
thur     117 

Asses,  shoes  for 250 

Assumpta  est  Maria,  see  Pales- 

trina. 
Astronomy,  Aztec  knowledge  of.216 

Bede's  views  on 78 

taught  by  fiction 350 

Augustine,  Order  of  St.,  and  the 

Imitation    324 

Austen,     Jane,      her     literary 

methods     313 

Authorships,  disputed   ...295,  323 
Avery   collection,    of   architect- 
ural books  342 

Averying,  Henry  de,  and  horse- 
shoes     253 

Aztecs,  astronomy,  their  knowl- 
edge of  216 

baptism  practiced  by 214 

confession      and      absolution 

practiced  by 214 

cross,  use  of  on  altars 216 

descended     from     Ten     Lost 

Tribes    213 

hieroglyphics  of,  how  painted.222 

heroes,  Eight-Deer 223 

and  Twelve-Ollin   222 

manuscripts,  see  Mexican  An- 
tiquities, 
marriage  ceremonies  of 223 


Aztecs,   marriage   customs   and 

ceremonies    212 

marriage  laws    214 

nation,  founded  by  Votan. .  .213 
nose   ornaments,    significance 

of     223 

restricted  daily  conveniences.213 
telescope,       their       disputed 

knowledge   of    216 

tradition  of  St.  Thomas 214 

tradition  of  the  Deluge 214 

tradition  of  the  Redemption. 214 
tradition  of  triumph  of  new 

religion    216 

traditions  of  Biblical  events. 214 

BABEL,  Tower  of,  Votan  pres- 
ent at 213 

Babrius   297 

his       Fables,      drawn     from 

^Esop    297 

Lewis'  edition  of 290 

Babylonian  laws,  see  Code,  The 

Hammurabi. 
Bacon,  Delia,  earnestness  of... 360 
Bacon,  Friar  Roger,  his  works, 

scope  of   16 

his  career    16 

his  experiment  in  Black-art...  17 
Bacon,       Lord,       his     literary 

methods    313 

his  New  Atlantis 166 

Baini,     on    Palestrina's    Papae 

Marcelli    305 

Baldness,  cures  for 20 

Baptism,  practiced  by  Aztecs.  .214 
Baring-Gould,   S.,  his    Curious 

Myths    216 

Barnaby  Rudge,  see  Dickens. 
Barnes,     Albert,     his     literary 

methods    312 

Barry,  Gerald  du,  see  Giraldus 

Cambrensis. 
Bartsch,     Adam,     his     visiting 

cards     242 

Barzuyeh,    his    translation    of 

Bidpai    292 

Basilica  di  San  Marco 97 

Basset,  M.  E.  S.,  her  Judith's 

Garden   45 

Bath,  on  visiting  cards 242 


INDEX. 


367 


Bayle,       Peter,     his      literary 

methods     312 

Beaconsfield,  Lord,  his  literary 

methods    312 

on  Gray    313 

Beaumont   and   Fletcher,   their 

Women  Pleased   293 

their    indebtedness    to    Bid- 

pai 293 

Beaumont,  Joseph,  his  Psyche. 313 
Beaupre,  Mile,  carriage  of....  129 
Becket,  Archbishop,  sources  of 

information  about   27 

Bede,  The  Venerable,  on  astro- 
nomy       78 

Bedfordshire  Library,  its  copy 

of  Book  of  Martyrs 153 

Belgians,  King  of  the,  mishap 

of   58 

Bell  of   St.   Paul's,  see  Besant. 
Benedict,  Order  of  St.,  and  the 

Imitation    324 

Beranger,  P.  J.  de,  his  literary 

methods     313 

Beroaldo,   Philip,   the  younger, 

editor  of  Tacitus  ms 180 

Berrys,  The  Miss,  and  Walpole.242 

their  visiting  cards 241 

Besant,  Sir  Walter,  his  Armorel 

of  Lyonnesse 348 

his  Bell  of  St.  Paul's 349 

Bethe,  Eric,  his  introduction  to 

Terence  fac-similes 186 

Bible,  events  in,  in  Aztec  tradi- 
tions      214 

Text  of  the 191 

see  also  History  of  the  Old 
and  New  Testaments. 

Biblia  Pauperum 48 

where  reproduced 48 

windows   of   Herschare   Con- 
vent in  48 

Bibliomaniacs  criticised  in  The 

Tatler     55 

Bidpai,    his   Fables,    Beaumont 
and  Fletcher's  indebtedness 

to    293 

Firdausi  on  their  discovery .  292 

first  translation  292 

Jacobs'  edition   293 

Lafontaine's  indebtedness  to. 293 
Lewis  Taylor  on 294 


Bidpai,  Massinger's  indebted- 
ness to  293 

Binney,  Horace,  and  illumi- 
nating gas  110 

Biography,  study  of,  incited  by 

fiction    33 

taught  by  fiction   350 

Births,  number  per  minute.  .  .261n 
Black,     William,     his     White 

Wings  348 

Black-art,  Friar  Bacon'6  experi- 
ment     17 

Blackmore,    R.    D.,    his    Lorna 

Doone   350 

Blades,  William,  his  Pentateuch 

of  Printing  48 

Blanco,  Fr.  Manuel,  his  Flora 

de  Filipinas    44 

Blind,  books  for  the   341 

Block-Books,  Ars  Moriendi. ...  47 

Biblia  Pauperum    48 

Brussels  book,  dispute  as  to 

date  of  47 

Canticum  Canticorum 49 

dates  of   47 

Dutuit's  book  on 48 

how  made    46 

Bodleian  Library,  Mendoza  col- 
lection     210 

St.   Margaret's    Book   of  the 

Gospels    233 

Boileau,  M.,  and  Sevres  porce- 
lain factory    130 

Bolingbroke,  Lord,  in  Devereux.350 
Bonaventura,      the      Imitation 

ascribed  to    326 

Boniface,  Duke,  his  horses  shod 

with   silver    249 

Book  Hunter,  see  Burton. 
Book  of  Martyrs,  see  Fox. 
Books,  as  funeral  memorials.  .271 

classifications  of 346 

for  the   blind 341 

greatness   of    147 

Newberry's    methods    to  en- 
courage sales    84 

suggestions    to    users  of  not 

appreciated    346 

Borrow,  Robert  de,  his  claims 
not  reconcilable  with 
Map's  121n 


368 


INDEX. 


Borunda,  discoverer  of  key  to 
Mexican  hieroglyphics    ...210 

Botany  and  Block-Books  . 39 

Bottger,  discoverer  of  kaolin  in 
Europe    128 

Bourgeois,  Dumas'  assistant. .  .314 

Bourke,  Comtesse  de,  abduction 
of    335 

Bourke,  Mile.,  abduction  of... 335 
source  of  Modern  Telemachus.336 

Bradley,  J.  W.,  his  Dictionary 
of  Miniaturists    229 

Brahmins,  Friday  supersti- 
tions    277 

Brazil,  colonized  by  John  III.  .135 

Bread,  baked  on  Good  Friday, 
properties   of    283 

Bremen       Cathedral,       sculptures 
of    48 

Breviary    of    Cardinal   Gri- 

mani 225 

see  also  Grimani. 

Bride  of  Lammermoor,  see  Scott. 

British   Essayists    51 

British  Museum,  its  Codex 
Alexandrinus    191 

Bruce,  Robert,  in  Scottish 
Chiefs    352 

Brun,  Walter  le,  and  horse- 
shoes     254 

Brunetto,  Dante's  revenge  on.  .   82 

Brussels  Block-Book,  dispute 
as  to  date 47 

Brutus,  King  Nezahualpilli  a 
second     215 

Buchanan,  Robert,  his  Shadow 
of  the  Sword,  incentive  to 
study  of  Napoleoniana ....   32 

Bulls  and  blunders,  in  Robin- 
son Crusoe    157 

in  translations  of  Franklin's 
Autobiography    175 

Bulwer-Lytton,  Lord,  his  Com- 
ing  Race 166 

his  Devereux,  historical  char- 
acters in    350 

introduces  Steele  and  Ad- 
dison       55 

his  Harold    351 

his  Last  of  the  Barons 351 

his   Rienzi    352 

on  earnestness 363 


Buns,  Hot  cross 281 

pagan  origin  of 281 

see  also  Good  Friday. 
Bunyan,     John,     his     copy     of 
Fox's  Book  of  Martyrs.  ..  153 

his  early  life 151 

his   Holy  War 151 

Canon  Venables  on 151 

Froude,  J.  A.,  on 151 

Lord    Macaulay    on 151 

his  Pilgrim's  Progress 150 

Canon    Venables    on 151 

Dr.    Johnson   on 155 

editions   of    152 

Froude,  J.  A.,  on 151 

his  authorship  disputed.  .  .323 
influence  of  Morte  Darthur 

on    122 

Lord  Macaulay  on. ...  150,  151 

Richard  Dowling  on 150 

humor  of    153 

lives  of 153 

number  of  his  works 154 

on  death  of  Bishop  Gardiner.  153 
variations    in     spelling     his 

name     153 

Buonaventura,  see  Bonaventura. 
Burdett-Coutts,    Baroness,  and 

horse-shoes    257 

Burke,    Edmund,    his    literary 

methods     313 

Burton,  J.  H,  his  Book  Hunter, 

on  children's  books 78 

Burton,    Richard,    on    Utopian- 
ism     171 

Busby,  wielder  of  the  cane 80 

Butler,   Samuel,  his  Hudibras, 

on  horse-shoes   257 

Byron,  Lord,  his  Childe  Harold, 

on   Laocoon   group 69 

Byzantine     Empire,    mourning 
customs    264 

CABYLES,  their  abduction  of 
the  De  Bourkes 335 

Cadaver,  origin  of  word 24 

Cajetan,   C  o  n  s  t  a  ntine,   Dean 

Hook  on 326 

on  authorship  of  the  Imita- 
tion   326 

Calenius,    Walter,    his    manu- 
script     119 


INDEX. 


369 


Ca^nius,  Walter,  doubt  as  to.  .120 

Caliban,  a  sister  to 361 

Cambrensis,    Giraldus,    see    Gi- 
raldus  Cambrensis. 

Ca     >ls,   shoes  for 250 

Ce   :pbell,  Lord,  on  indexes.  ...    15 
Cm*,  lanites,  their  use  of  horse- 
shoes      250 

'      idles,  not  known  to  Aztecs. 213 

i     le,   Busby,   wielder  of 80 

Vack   Durham,  wielder  of..   82 

C  nticum  Cantieorum    49 

Canova,  A.,  his  visiting  card.  .  .241 

Caradoc,   of  Llancarvan 120 

Or  ~ds,  see  Playing  cards. 
Cards,  see  Visiting  cards. 
Carnegie,  Andrew,  and  The  Free 

Library   of   Philadelphia.  .341 
Carpets,   see  Oriental    Carpets. 
Carriage,  with  porcelain  panels. 129 
Carvill,  William,  introducer  of 

cricket   in  America 112 

Casanova,    A.,    his    designs    for 

visiting  cards   242 

Catherine,      St.,      Convent      of, 

and  Codex  Sinaiticus 200 

Catherine  II.,  her  porcelain  ser- 
vice     131 

Catullus,   quoted    251 

Caxton,  William,  his  Myrrour, 

definition    of    rhetoric 82 

his    Morte    Darthur,    reprint 

of     115 

his   Thymage 82 

Cervantes,  Miguel  de,  Coleridge. 

S.  T.,  on   , 163 

Heine,  Heinrich,  on 163 

his  Don  Quixote    161 

Dr.  Johnson  on 155 

dramatizations  of    163 

editions    of    161 

Irving's  performance  of...  163 
its   influence    on     manners 

and  literature    161 

Sedgwick,  H.  D.,  on 164 

his  Persilis  and  Sigismunda.163 

Scott,  Sir  W.,  on 163 

other  authors'  estimation  of.  163 
Chalmers,    Alexander,    his    edi- 
tion of  British  essayists...  60 

24 


Chambers,  Robert,  on  playing 
cards     243 

Chapman,  George,  his  All 
Fooles     188 

Charlemagne,  piece  of  his 
horse's  shoe    253 

Charles  Auchester,  see  Sheppard. 

Charms,  against  bewitchment.  .275 

Chaucer,  G.,  his  N  o  n  n  e  s 
Preestes  Tale,  quoted,  on 
Friday    276 

Cheats  of  Scapin,  see  Moliere. 

Chess,  Ulysses,  inventor  of .  .  .  .   26 

Child  and  His  Book,  see  Field. 

Childe  Harold,  see  Byron. 

Children,   duty   of..." 79 

Children,  effect  of  Puritanism 
on    83 

Children's  Literature  75 

Chinese,  mourning  customs  of. 262 

Chips  from  a  German  Work- 
shop, see  Migration  of 
Fables. 

Chronicle  of  Abbey  of  Evesham, 
see  Evesham. 

Chronicles,  annals  not  histories.  33 

humorous  statements  in 38 

used  in  fiction   35 

see  also  Early  Chronicles. 

Chronicles  and  Memorials,  see 
Master  of  the  Rolls  Series. 

Chronicon,  Geoffrey  of  Mon- 
mouth's, source  of 119 

Cibber,  Colley,  in  Devereux ....  350 

Cistercian     monastery,    see 
Melsa. 
monks,   disliked  by   Giraldus 
Cambrensis     19 

Civil  Government,  see  Locke. 

Clarke,  Dr.,  editor  English  edi- 
tion of  Oriental  Carpets.  ..  70 

Clarke.  Marcus,  His  Natural 
Life,  incentive  to  study  of 
penology     32 

Clement,  St.,  his  Epistles,  ms. 
of     196 

Clemes  monachos   199 

Code,  The  Hammurabi 87 

see  also  Hammurabi. 

Codex,   Aleph 201 

Alexandrinus 191 

date    of    192 


370 


INDEX. 


Codex,  Alexandrinus,  fac-simile 

of 193 

lacuna?    196 

presented  to  James  1 195 

St.  Thecla  alleged  scribe  of.  194 

Ephraemi    192n 

Frederico    Augustanus 201 

Graeci   et  Latini — Tacitus.  ..  179 

Terence    185 

volumes  issued  181 

Sinaiticus    192 

date  of   192 

discovery  of 200 

Eusebius  alleged  scribe  of. 205 

Vaticanus   191 

date  of   192,  197 

facsimiles  of    197 

injuries   to    199 

lacunse    197 

see  also  Mexican  Antiqui- 
ties. 
see  also  Nuttall  Codex. 
Codices,  Uncial  writing  in.  .  .  .  193 
Cole,    Dr.,   loss    of    commission 

to  persecute  heretics 244 

Coleridge,  S.  T.,  on  Piranesi . .    67 

Lamb  on    363 

on   Cervantes    163 

Colet,    Dean,    friendship    with 

Sir  Thomas  More 168 

Colman.  George  B.,  joint-editor 

of  The  Connoisseur 59 

Columbia    University    Library, 

its  Avery  collection 342 

Columbus,    Christopher,   proph- 
ecy regarding   74 

sailed  on  Friday 279 

Columbus,   son   of  Christopher, 

his  Vida  y  Hechos 74 

refutation    of    Genoan    Poly- 
glot      74 

Comfort,    Howard,    his    hit    at 

cricket    112 

Coming  Race,  see  Bulwer-Lyt- 

ton. 
Common    of   the    Apostles    and 

Evangelists,  manuscript.  .  .  141 
Communications   with   the   Un- 
seen World    216 

Confession       and       absolution, 

practiced  by  Aztecs 214 

Connoisseur,  The   59 


Constantine,     and     the    Codex 

Sinaiticus    205 

Consuelo,  see   Sand. 
Cornwall,  Arthurian  legends  in. 119 
Corporal  punishment  in  schools  81 
Corpse,  origin  of  word  in  Latin.  24 
Count    of     Monte     Chisto,     see 

Dumas. 
Courtesy,  old-time  books  on ... .   80 
Courting,  not  permitted  on  Fri- 
day     278 

Coverley,     Sir     Roger    de,    see 
Spectator. 

Cox-Cox,  the  Aztec  Noah 214 

Craik,  Henry,  on  Utopia 169 

Cricket,  first  played  in  America 

at  Haverford   112 

Criticism,  excesses  of 165 

Cross,  on  Aztec  altars 216 

Crusades,  eloquence  of  Giraldus 

Cambrensis    18 

Cumberland,    Henry,    publisher 

of  The  Observer 60 

Curious     Myths,      see     Baring- 
Gould. 
Cutter,  C.  A.,  his  classification.346 
Cyrus,    his     fable      Fisherman 
Piping    296 

DACIER,  Mme.,  on  Terence..  187 
Daemonologie,  see  Home. 
Dante,  his  revenge  on  Brunetto  82 

D'Artagnan  series 318,  351 

Darwin,   Charles,  his  books  on 

botany   45 

Davenant,      Sir     Wlliam,      his 

adaptation  of  Macbeth 360 

his  adaptation  of  The  Tem- 
pest     361 

his   Law  against   Lovers,   an 

adaptation  of  Shakespeare. 360 
his  Rivals,  an  adaptation  of 

Shakespeare    361n 

David,  King,  life  of,  paralleled 

by  King  Nezahualcoyotl .  ..214 
Davies,     James,    translator    of 

Lewis'  Babrios   290 

Death,    fictitious    report    of    in 

The  World 58 

Deaths,  number  per  minute.. 261n 
Defence  of  Guenevere,  see  Mor- 
ris. 


INDEX. 


371 


Defoe,  Daniel,  changes  of  name.  159 

his  New  Voyage    348 

his   Review    54 

his   Robinson   Crusoe    155 

ascribed  to  Lord  Oxford..  160 

blunders  in   157 

Dr.  Johnson  on 155 

editions  of 159 

germ    of,    in    Persilis    and 

Sigismunda   1 63 

lessons  of    156 

not  due  to  Alexander  Sel- 
kirk     157 

Poe  on    159 

Rousseau  on    159 

Scott  on   155 

superior  to   Aristotle   Buf- 

f on  and  Pliny 159 

his  tomb   160 

Del    Rio,  his    Disquisitions    on 
Magic,  on  cutting  nails.  .  .  .281 

Deluge,  Aztec  account  of 214 

Denmark,    kings    of,    descended 

from  David   9 

De  Quincey,   Thomas,  on  Pira- 

nesi's  Dreams   67 

Derby,  Countess  of,  in  Leaguer 

of  Lathom   351 

Devereux,    see   Bulwer-Lytton. 
Devonshire  described   in  Lorna 

Doone   350 

Dewey,    Melvil,    his    classifica- 
tion    346 

De  Witts,  The,  in  Black  Tulip. 348 

Dibdin,  T.  F 77 

on  Nuremberg  Chronicle....   37 

on  Tacitus   180 

Dickens,   Charles,   his   Barnaby 
Rudge,  No  Popery  riots  in. 352 
his  definition  of  earnestness. 358 
his     Tale     of     Two     Cities. 

French  revolution  in 352 

Dictionary  of  Miniatursts,   see 
Bradley. 

Dilke,  Mrs.,  her  funeral 270 

Disquisitions  on  Magic,  see  Del 

Rio. 
Disraeli,   see   Beaconsfield. 
Dr.  Sommer's  Le  Morte 

Darthur   113 

Doctors,    forced   to    partake   of 
own  medicines    20 


Dog,  as  an  assistant  in  sailing.   26 
Doge,  of  Venice,  Palm  Sunday 

procession   of    100 

Dogs,  on  visiting  cards 242 

shoes  for    252 

D'Olivenea,  Fr.  Blasius 137 

Dominicale,  manuscript    138 

Don  Quixote   161 

see  also  Cervantes. 
Dowling,  Richard,  his  Indolent 
Essays,  on  Pilgrim's  Prog- 
ress    150 

Drakslaw,    Count,    his   visiting 

card   243 

Dreams,    Friday's    276 

Dresden  porcelain,  produced  at 

Meissen    128 

Dryden,    John,    his    adaptation 

of  The  Tempest 361 

Duff,    Princess,     and    the   Lost 

Tribes    10 

Dugdale,  Sir  William,  quoted.. 270 
Dumas,    Alexandre,   his    assist- 
ants      314 

his    authorship    disputed.  ..  .314 
his    Black    Tulip,    introduces 

the  De  Witts 348 

his  Count  of  Monte  Cristo..317 
his   D'Artagnan   series.  .318,  351 

Thackeray  on  319 

his   ending  to  Hamlet 315 

his  literary  pi-olificness 311 

his     Marie     Antoinette      ro- 
mances     319 

history  taught  by 319 

Dundonald.  Earl  of.  observance 

of  Friday  superstition.  .  .  .280 
Durham.  Wack.  wielder  of  cane  82 
Dutuit,  Eugene,  his  Manuel...   48 

Duty,  of  children   79 

of    men     79 

of  women    79 

De   Vries,   see  Vries. 

EACHARD,      his      satire      on 
preachers     81 

Earey  Chronici.es    29 

Earnestness  a  Necessity  for 

Permanence     355 

Earnestness,  Bulwer-Lytton  on. 363 

Delia   Bacon's    360 

Dickens'   definition    358 


372 


INDEX. 


Earnestness,  Franklin  on 363 

Garrick   on    363 

Goethe  on 364 

Hawthorne's     358 

Milton's     361 

misdirected     357 

not  alone  sufficient 364 

Pascal's   definition    358 

Salvini   on    362 

Shakespeare's    360 

William    and    Caroline    Her- 

schel's     359 

Easter,     spring    lamb,   due    to 

Jewish    Passover 282 

Edmands,   John,   his   classifica- 
tion      346 

Edmonds,  Mrs.,  and  a  Protest- 
ant persecution   244 

Education,     fostered     by     Free 

Libraries    340 

Egypt,    horse-shoes    in 251 

Eight-Deer,  Aztec  hero... 222,  223 
Elijah,  parallel  tradition  of  St. 

Thomas     214 

Eliot,      George,      her      literary 

methods     314 

her  Romola    350 

Elizabeth,  Queen,  and  a  Protest- 
ant persecution    245 

Elizabeth      and      her     German 

Garden,  see  Arnim. 
Ellis,  Sir  Henry,  on  authorship 

of   Robinson   Crusoe 160 

Eloquence,    of    Giraldus    Cam- 

brensis    18 

Endurance  feats,  stupidity  of..    60 

Epic,  the  English 118 

Erasmus,      and      Sir      Thomas 

More     108 

Erewhon,   see   Morris. 

Ethiopia,   horse-shoes   in 251 

Eusebius,  alleged  scribe  of  Co- 
dex  Sinaiticus    205 

Eve,  see  Adam  and  Eve. 
Evesham,  Abbey  of,  founded  on 

spot  of  vision 35 

life  at    22 

suppressed  by  Henry  VIII..   23 
Evesham,  Chronicle  of  Abbey  of  21 


FABLES    285 
iEsop's,  see  ./Esop. 
Babrius',  see  Babrius. 
Belly  and  the  Members  of  the 

Body    296 

Bidpai's,  see  Bidpai. 

characters   of  animals  in.... 294 

classes  of    287 

definition  of,  De  la  Motte's..287 

Goldsmith's     287 

Lafontaine's    287 

Dog  with  Young 288 

Fisherman    Piping 296 

Gay's,  see  Gay. 

Hitopadesa     291 

Horse  and  the  Stag 296 

Man  and  the  Lamb 291 

modified  by  travel 299 

Nightingale  and  the  Hawk .  .  290 

origin  of   290 

Pantchatantra     291 

Perrette  the  Milkmaid 299 

Phaedrus',  see  Phsedrus. 

Thistle  and  the  Cedar 289 

Trees  electing  a  King 289 

Fac-similes  Mexican,  issued  by 

Due  de  Loubat 217 

Fac- similes    of     Portions   of 
the   Works    of    Terence, 
the  Poet  and  Dramatist.  183 
Fac-similes     of    the    Manu- 
scripts of  Tacitus   177 

see  also   Breviary   of   Car- 
dinal Grimani. 
see     also     Codex — Alexan- 

drinus. 
see     also     Codex — Sinaiti- 
cus. 
see     also     Codex — Vatica- 

nus. 
see  also  Mexican   Antiqui- 
ties. 
see  also  Nuttall  Codex. 
see     also     St.     Margaret's 
Book  of  the  Gospels. 
Faerie  Queene,  see  Spenser. 
Fairies,    Three,    bring    luck    at 

birth     35 

Falier,  Doge  OrdelafTo,  restorer 

of  the  Pala  d'Oro 100 

Fall,  The,  happened  on  Friday.276 
Fasciculi  ascribed  to  Netter.  .  .35n 


INDEX. 


373 


Fasciculi,  on  the  Lollards 35 

Felt,  used  for  horse-shoes 255 

Ferial  Book,  manuscript.  .  139,  140 
Ferrers,    Henry    de,    origin    of 

name  of   253 

Few  Art  Treasures,  A 63 

Fiction,  an  incentive  to  study..   32 
Arthurian  legends  taught  by. 348 

astronomy  taught  by 350 

biography   taught   by 350 

circulation  of,  in  libraries.  .  .345 

educative    347 

Fielding's     comparison     with 

history    160 

geography   taught  by 348 

history  taught  by 348 

how  classified  in  libraries.  .  .347 

read  by  great  men 345 

taken  from  old  chronicles.  .  .   35 
Fiction,    Value    of    Reading, 

The     345 

Fiefdoms,   held  by   payment   of 

horse-shoes     253 

Field,  E.  M„  her  Child  and  His 

Book    77 

Fielding,    Henry,    his    compari- 
son of  fiction  and  history.  160 

Fijian  mourning  customs 265 

Finns,   Monday   superstitions.  .277 

Friday  superstitions 277 

Firdausi,     his     Shah     Nameh. 

quoted     292 

Fitzgerald,    Percy,    his    charge 

against  Dumas   314 

Fletcher,     Beaumont    and,    see 

Beaumont  and  Fletcher. 
Flora  de  Filipinas,  see  Blanco. 
Floriculture,  books  on,  see  Bot- 
any and  Block-Books. 
Flourishing    of    Romance,    see 

Saintsbury. 
Flowers,  books  on,   see  Botany 
and  Block-Books. 

Flying  venom,  cure  for   20 

Folio,  Tom,  his  opinion  of  The 

Tatler  55 

Forbes-Leith,  Fr.  W.,  editor  of 
St.  Margaret's  Book  of  the 

Gospels     233 

Forest,  similarity  to  a  librarv, 

31,  41,  61,  65 


Fox,   John,   his    Book   of   Mar- 
tyrs, Bunyan's  copy  of .  ...  153 
Francis,    Robert,    his    Code    of 

Hammurabi     89 

Franklin,  Benjamin,  founder  of 
Philadelphia  Library    ....  176 

his  Autobiography 173 

demand  for   175 

history       of      the     manu- 
scripts     174n 

how   published    174 

McMaster,  J.  B.,  on 176 

mistakes  in  translations  of.  175 

when   written    173 

life   and   works   of,   new  edi- 
tion      176 

on  earnestness    363 

Franklin's   Autobiography.  ..173 

see  also   Franklin. 
Frederick  Augustus,   patron   of 

Tischendorf    200 

Frederico     Augustanus,    Codex 
of,  see    Codex — Sinaiticus. 
Free  Libraries,  see  Libraries. 
Free   Library    of   Philadelphia, 

The,  see  Philadelphia. 
Freemasons,     funeral      customs 

of     271 

French  mourning  colours 266 

French   Revolution,   in   Tale   of 

Two   Cities    352 

Friday    273 

attempts   to   disprove    super- 
stitions     280 

blessed   day   to   die 277 

Chaucer  on   276 

Columbus   sailed   on 279 

courting  on,   disallowed 278 

dreams    276 

luckiness  of    279 

marriages   on    277 

origin  of  superstitions 

against   279 

sailors'  superstitions    279 

ships  lost  which  sailed  on.  .  .280 

streets  named   282 

superstitions    275 

travel  on    279 

unluckiness   of,   origin 275 

see  also  Good  Friday. 
Friday  of  Wilmington,  loss  of.280 
Friend,  The   108 


374 


INDEX. 


Friends,  founders  of  Haverford 

College    108 

Froude,  J.  A.,  on  Holy  War.  .  .151 

on  Pilgrim's  Progress 151 

Fulvy,  Orry  de,  his  connection 

with  Sevres  porcelain 130 

Funerals,   Freemason   customs. 271 
John   Paston's     extravagance 

at    269 

memorial  books    271 

Mrs.   Dilke's,  niggardly 270 

pretty  custom  at 271 

wine   at    269 

see  also  Mourning. 

GAMA,    on    key    to    Mexican 
hieroglyphics    210 

Garden  of  a  Commuter's  Wife.   45 

Gardiner,    Bishop,    Bunyan    on 
death    of    153 

Gamier,  Edouard,  his  Soft  Por- 
celain of  Sevres 66,  127 

see  also  Porcelain. 

Garrick,  David,  on  earnestness. 363 

Gas,  opposition  to  at  Haverford 

College    110 

slight  explosion  of,  at  Haver- 
ford College    110 

Gay,  Thomas,  his  Fables,  illus- 
trated editions  of 298 

his  Old  Woman  and  her  Cats, 

quoted    256 

incident  of,  told  in  The  Ad- 
venturer       58 

Genoa,  see  Lorenzo,  San. 

Genoan  Polyglot  Psalter 71 

Geoffrey     of     Monmouth,     his 
Chronicon,     Arthurian 

legends  in    120 

source  of 119 

Geography,  taught  by  fiction .  .  348 

Gersen,    John,     the     Imitation, 
ascribed  to    326 

Gerson,   Chancellor,  the  Imita- 
tion, ascribed  to   327 

Gesta     Romanorum,     indebted- 
ness  to   Bidpai 293 

Gildas     119 

Giraldus   Cambrensis,    his    life 
and  works   18 

Gilroy,  Mr.,  on  Morte  Darthur.118 


Globe  Theatre,   in   Bell   of   St. 

Paul's     349 

Goethe,  J.  W  von,  on  earnest- 
ness      364 

Gold,  horse-shoes  of 249 

Goldsmith,   Oliver,    his    defini- 
tion of  a  fable 287 

his  literary  methods 314 

his      Vicar       of      Wakefield, 
original  of  Dr.  Primrose .  .   84 

on   John   Newberry 84 

Good  Friday,  bread  baked  on .  .  283 

buns    281 

see   also   Hot   cross   buns. 

day    for    witches 275 

parsley  sown  on 283 

see  also  Friday. 
Gordon,     Lord     George,      in 

Barnaby  Rudge    352 

Gospels,  Book  of  the,  see  Mar- 
garet, St. 
Gould,   S.   Baring-,   see  Baring- 
Gould. 

Graduale,  manuscript 140 

Grail,  Holy,  see  Morte  Darthur. 
Gray,  Thomas,  Beaconsfield  on.313 

his  Elegy,  a  mosaic 323 

smallness  of  production 313 

Greeks,  horse-shoes  not  common 

amongst    251 

mourning  customs  of 263 

Grimani,    Cardinal,   his    Brev- 
iary     227 

contents  of    228 

history  of    228 

Morelli,    Giacomo,    on 227 

price  paid  for 228 

style  of  illustration 229 

time  of  execution 228 

Grimm's  Fairy  Tales  duplicated 

in  chronicles   35 

Growth     of     the     Idylls,     see 
Jones. 

Guardian,  The    57 

Guardian,  The,  see  Massinger. 

HAMLET,  see  Shakespeare. 
Hammurabi  Code,  The..   87 
its   difference  to  the  Mosaic 

code     92 

Hammurabi,  King  of  Babylon, 
code  of  89 


INDEX. 


375 


Hammurabi,  his  estimation  of 

himself    90 

Handbook    of    Alpine    flowers, 

see  Sutherland. 
Handel,  G.  F.,  his  Messiah  com- 
posed in  one  month 16 

Harold,  see  Bulwer-Lytton. 
Harrington,  James,  his  Oceana.  166 

Haverfobd  College    105 

beginnings  of    108 

call  issued  to  raise  funds . .  .  109 

consumption  of  pie 110 

History  of    107 

projected  1877    108 

its  library  112 

music  forbidden  at Ill 

re-opening  1848    109 

slight  explosion  at 110 

suspension  of,   1845 108 

tardy  adoption  of  gas 110 

pioneer  in  American  cricket.112 
Hawk,    generosity    to    its    live 

bedding    26 

Hawkesworth,    Dr.    John,    pub- 
lisher of  The  Adventurer.   58 
Hawthorne,  Nathaniel,  earnest- 
ness of   358 

his   Marble    Faun,    a    guide 

book   to   Rome 349 

his  Scarlet  Letter 359 

his    Twice    Told    Tales,    re- 
viewed by  Longfellow 358 

Haydn,  Joseph,  in  Consuelo . .  .  352 
Head,  Talking-,  Friar  Bacon's.  17 
Hearne,    Thomas,    his    literary 

methods    312 

Hector  Servadac,  see  Verne. 
Heine,  Heinrich,  on  Cervantes.  163 
Henry    I.,    entertained    by    an 

Abbot    19 

Henry  II.,  portrayed  in  Morte 

'Darthur    122 

Henry  IV.,  fondness  for  Friday.279 
Henry     VIII. ,     assumption    of 
mourning  for  Anne  Boleyn.268 

his  treatment  of  More 167 

sponsor    for    the    Winchester 

Round-Table    120 

Henry  Esmond,  see  Thackeray. 

Henry  of  Huntingdon 120 

Herbs,  defined  by  Alcuin 78 


Herodotus,  his  fable  Fisherman 

Piping    296 

Herschare,     Convent       of,     its 
windows     in     Biblia    Pau- 

perum    48 

Herschel,   Caroline,  earnestness 

of    359 

Herschel,     Sir     William,     dis- 
covery  of  Uranus 359 

earnestness  of 359 

Smiles  on    359 

Hesiod,   his    fable,    Nightingale 

and  the  Hawk 290 

Hieroglyphics,     Mexican,    how 

painted    222 

alleged  key  to 210 

Hill,  Lucy,  and  St.  Margaret's 

Book  of  the  Gospels 234 

Hilton,   Walton,   the   Imitation 

ascribed   to    328 

His  Natural  Life,  see  Clarke. 

Histories,  how  made 33 

History,  Fielding's  comparison 

of,   with    fiction 160 

in    nursery    rhymes 8 

taught  by  fiction 348 

History    of    Haverford   Col- 
lege      107 

see  also  Haverford  College. 
History  of  the  Art  of  Printing, 

see  Humphreys. 
History     of     the     Britons,    see 

Wace. 
History   of   the   Old   and   New 
Testament,  see  Wesley. 

History  Repeats  Itself 333 

Hitopadesa    291 

Hobbes,  Thomas,  his  Leviathan. 166 
Hofer,    Andreas,     in     Andreas 

Hofer    ■ 351 

Hogarth,    William,    contributor 
to  satirical  art  exhibition.   59 
his  Marriage  a  la  Mode,  and 

visiting  cards   240 

Holbein,  Hans,  the  younger,  his 
picture     of     Sir     Thomas 

More  172 

Holy  Grail,  see  Morte  Darthur. 
Holy  War,  see  Bunyan. 
Holy  Water,  rivalled  by  horse- 
shoes      257 


376 


INDEX. 


Holyday,  his  Marriage  of  the 
Arts,  quoted  on  horse- 
shoes      255 

Home,    Dr.,    his    Daemonologie, 

quoted  on  horse-shoes 255 

Homer,  a  mythical  person 323 

Hood,  Dean,  on  Cajetan 326 

Horn -books     81 

Horse-shoes    247 

as  protection  against  witches.256 

as  rival  to  Holy  Water 257 

as  toll    253 

Baroness  Burdett-Coutts'  be- 
lief in   257 

belief  in,  derived  from  men- 
isci     257 

Butler   on    257 

Casaubin  on    250 

Catullus'  reference  to 251 

early  forms  of 251 

first  use  of,  unknown 250 

forge  held  by  payment  of .  .  .  254 

furnished  for  fiefdoms 253 

good-luck  to   finders 255 

Holyday    on    255 

Home,  on  finding  of 255 

how   fastened   anciently 252 

humorous   story   of 258 

imperfectly  fastened    251 

in  Egypt    251 

in    England,     introduced    by 
William,  the  Conqueror .  .  .  253 

in  Ethiopia   251 

in  Japan    251 

in  Tartary   251 

London  held  by  the  corpora- 
tion by  payment  of 254 

mentioned  by  Emperor  Leo.  .252 

Mithridates'  lack  of 252 

nails  for,  most  ancient 253 

not    common      amongst    the 

Greeks  and  Romans 251 

number  to  be  seen  in  London.257 

of   felt    255 

of  gold,  Poppaea's 249 

of   iron,   first  used   by   Thes- 

salonians     252 

of  leather    251 

of  silver,  Duke  Boniface's.  .  .249 

Nero's     249 

piece  of  one  worn  by  Charle- 
magne's horse 253 


Horse-shoe:,  used  by  Canaan- 

ites 250 

Vespasian,   delayed   by 252 

Horses,  not  known  to  Aztecs.  ..213 

Hot  cross  buns,  see  Buns. 

Hudibras,  see  Butler. 

Hugo,  Victor,  his  Les  Miser- 
ables,  an  incentive  to  study 
of  Napoleoniana    32 

Humphreys,  H.  N.,  his  History 
of  the  Art  of  Printing.  .47,  48 

Huntingdon,  see  Henry  of. 

Hurry,   Lubbock  on 364 

TDLER,  The 60 

*     Idylls  of  the  King,  see  Ten- 
nyson. 

Image-Books,  see  Block-Books. 

Imitation,  danger  of  blind 26 

Imitation  of  Christ,  Of  the 

147,  321 
see  also  Kempis. 

Imperial  Library  (Russian), 
and  Codex  Sinaiticus 191 

Incidents  of  Travel,  see 
Stephens. 

Index  to  persons  and  places  in 
Morte   Darthur 117 

Indexes,  Lord  Campbell  on ...  .    15 

Indolent  Essays,  see  Dowling. 

Inquisition  in  Portugal,  estab- 
lished by  John  III 135 

Ireland,  connection  with  Lost 
Tribes     6 

Iron,  first  used  for  horse-shoes. 252 
not  known  to  Aztecs 213 

Irving,  Sir  Henry,  and  Don 
Quixote    163 

Isle  of  Wight,  origin  of  name. .   36 

JACOBS,   Joseph,   his   edition 
of   Bidpai    293 

James    I.,    and    mourning  for 

Prince  Henry    268 

Japan,    horse-shoes    in 251 

Japanese    mourning   customs . .  264 
Jehoash,  his  fable,  Thistle  and 

the  Cedar    289 

Jeremiah,  his  residence  in  Ire- 
land         7 

his  tomb    7 


INDEX. 


377 


Jeremiah,     quoted     concerning 

Zekekiah's  daughter 7 

Jewish  mourning  customs   . .  .  .2G1 
Jews,  see  Ten  Lost   Tribes. 
John  III.,  of  Portugal,  colonizer 

of  Brazil    135 

established      Inquisition      in 

Portugal    135 

manuscripts  presented  by  him. 135 
Johnson,     Margaret,       reputed 

witch    275 

Johnson,   Samuel,  his  criticism 

on  feat  of  endurance 60 

his  Rambler    57 

on  Don  Quixote   155 

on  Pilgrim's  Progress 155 

on  Robinson  Crusoe 155 

on  Sir  Thomas  More 170 

Jones,  Richard,  his  Growth  of 

the  Idylls,  quoted 118n 

Joseph,  identical  with  Lokman 

and   ^Esop 295 

Joseph  of  Arimathea,  his  use  of 

the  Grail   121 

Joshua,  the  causer  of  leap  year.  79 
Jotham,  his  fable,  Trees  elect- 
ing a  King 289 

Judith's    Garden,    sec    Basset. 
Julius  Caesar,  see  Shakespeare. 

Junius,  Letters  of 324 

Justin,  quoted   288 

KABYLES,  see  Cabyles. 
Kalilah  and  Dimnah.292,  293 
Kean,  Charles,  his    restoration 

of  Shakespeare  361 

Keary,    C.    F.,     on     Arthurian 

bibliography    119n 

Kempis,  Thomas  A',  his  Imita- 
tion   147,  323 

ascribed  to  Bonaventura.  .326 
ascribed  to  Chancellor  Ger- 

son    327 

ascribed  to  John  Gersen .  .  326 
ascribed  to  Walton  Hilton. 328 

Cajetan  on    327 

claimed  by  Augustine 

Order    324 

claimed      by       Benedictine 

Order    324 

his  authorship  disputed ...  324 
Marillac's    edition 329 


Kempis,  Thomas  A',  number  of 

editions    148 

Renan  on  authorship  of.  .  .327 

Richelieu's   edition    328 

testimonies  to  value  of... 328 
Wheatley  on  authorship  of.325 

his  life  325 

his  manuscripts   325 

Kenilworth,  see  Scott. 

Kenilworth  Castle   352 

King  Lear,  see  Shakespeare. 
Kingsborough,    Lord,    his    An- 
tiquities of  Mexico 209 

cost  of 209 

key  to  the  hieroglyphics.  ..210 

Mendoza   collection    210 

contents  of 211 

indebtedness   of  Prescott 

to     212 

his   hypothesis   of   Aztec   an- 
cestry     214 

his   interest   in   Mexican   an- 
tiquities     210 

imprisoned  for  debt 210 

Koster,    Lawrence,    reputed 
printer  of  Biblia  Pauperum.   48 
reputed    inventor    of    mov- 
able types 48 

I    ACHRYMATORIES 262 

*->      Lacroix,  Paul,  his  Middle 

Ages    47 

Lacy,  John,  his  Sawny  the 
Scot,  adapted  from  Shake- 
speare     361 

Lady  of  the  Lake,  see  Scott. 
Lafontaine,  Jean,  career  of .  .  .  .297 

his  definition  of  a  fable 287 

his  indebtedness  to  Bidpai..293 

stories  of    298 

Lamb,  at  Easter,  Jewish  origin 

of     282 

Lamb,  Charles,  on  Coleridge.  .  .363 
Lancelot,  see  Morte  Dartlmr. 
Lang,    Andrew,    his    essay    on 

Morte  Darthur   117 

Laocoon,  see  Les*ing. 

Laocoon    group,    as    posed    by 

Liibke   69 

as  posed  by  Piranesi 69 

Byron  on  69 


378 


INDEX. 


Laocoon  group,  Leasing  on ... .   69 

Thomson  on   69 

Virgil  on    69 

Last  of  the  Barons,  see  Bulwer- 

Lytton. 
Laurentian  Library,  its  Tacitus 

manuscripts   180 

Law  against  Lovers,  see  Dave- 

nant. 
Layamon,  Arthurian  legends  in.  121 
Leaguer  of  Lathom,  see  Ains- 

worth. 
Leap  Year,  produced  by  Joshua.  79 
Leather,  used  for  horse-shoes.  .251 
Lectures,  a  library  activity . .  .  342 
Leechdoms     Wortcunning     and 

Star-craft    19 

Leith,  see  Forbes-Leith. 

Lenox  Library,   its   editions   of 

Pilgrim's  Progress 152 

Leo,   Emperor,   his  mention   of 

horse-shoes     252 

Les  Miserables,  see  Hugo. 
Lessing,  G.  E.,  his  Laocoon ....   69 
Leviathan,  see  Hobbes. 
Lewis,  Sir  G.  C,  his  edition  of 

Babrios     290 

Lewis,  Taylor,  on  Bidpai 294 

Liberty,  see  Thomson. 
Libraries,  classific ations  of 

books  in   346 

education  fostered  by 339 

Free,  fiction,  circulation  of.. 345 

necessity  for  339 

Plea  for  339 

see    also    Philadelphia. 

similarity  to  a  forest 

31,41,61,65 
their  treatment  of  fiction ....  347 
Limoges    porcelain,    when    first 

manufactured    128 

Literary  methods,  Bacon's 313 

Barnes'     312 

Bayle's   312 

Beaconsfield's    312 

Beranger's    313 

Burke's     313 

George  Eliot's 314 

Goldsmith's   314 

Hearne's     312 

Jane  Austen's 313 


Literary  methods,  Miss  Yonge's  312 

Pliny's    312 

Saint-Pierre's    313 

Southey's    312 

Trollope's     312 

Warren's    313 

Literary  prolificness,  Dumas'.. 311 

Scott's    313 

Vega's    313 

Literature,  influenced    by    Don 

Quixote    161 

Little    Jack    Homer,    and    the 

Jews   8 

Liturgical  Manuscripts   ....  133 

Book  of  Offices 138 

Common  of  the  Apostles  and 

Evangelists    141 

Dominicale   138 

executed  with   stencils 136 

Ferial  Book   139,   140 

Graduale    140 

Psalterium    142 

Sancturale     137 

Seventeenth  century.  142, 143, 144 

Sixteenth  century  142 

Livy,  his  fable,  Bellv  and  Mem- 
bers of  the  Body 296 

Llancarvan,     Caradoc    of,     see 

Caradoc. 
Loch,  Katrine,  in  Lady  of  the 

Lake   352 

Locke,  John,  his  Civil  Govern- 
ment     166 

Lokman,   identified  with   ^Esop 

and  Joseph    295 

a  mythical  person 294 

Lollards,  in  Pecock's  Repressor.  27 

rise  of,  in  Fasciculi 35 

London,  held  by  part  payment 

of  horse-shoes    254 

Longfellow,   H.   W.,  his   review 

of  Twice  Told  Tales 359 

Lorenzo,  San,  of  Genoa,  custo- 
dian of  the  Grail 121 

Lorna  Doone,  see  Blackmore. 
Lost  Tribes,  see  Ten  Lost  Tribes. 
Loubat,    Due    de,    his    Mexican 

facsimiles   217 

Louis    XL,   his   assumption    of 

mourning  267 

Louis       XV.,       acquisition     of 
Sevres  Porcelain  factory. . .  130 


INDEX. 


379 


Lubbock,  Sir  John,  his  Hundred 

Books,  Ruskin  on 173 

on  hurry   364 

Liibke,  his  pose  of  the  Laocoon 
group    69 

Lunacy,  cure  for  21 

Lycians,  disapproval  of  mourn- 
ing    264 

MACAULAY,  Lord,  his  attack 
on  Walpole   242 

on  Holy  War 151 

on  Pilgrim's  Progress.  ..150,  151 
Macbeth,  see  Shakespeare. 
McMaster,  J.  B.,  on  Franklin's 

Autobiography    176 

Malmesbury,  see  William  of. 
Malory,  Sir  Thomas,  compiler, 

not  author 118 

his  Morte  Darthur 115 

Man  in  the  moon,  see  Moon. 
Manasseh,  Americans  lost  tribe 

of    6 

Manchester,  Public  Library,  its 

Earl  Spencer's  collection.  .  116 
Manners,     influenced     by     Don 

Quixote     161 

old-time  books  on 80 

Manriquez,    Pedro,  on    author- 
ship of  the  Imitation 326 

Manuel      a     l'Amateur      d'Es- 

tampes,  see  Dutuit 48 

Manuscripts,       Liturgical,     see 

Liturgical  Manuscripts. 
Map,  Walter,    his    claims    not 

disproven  121n 

his  introduction  of  the  Grail 
and    Lancelot    into    Morte 

Darthur    121 

Maquet,  Dumas'  assistant 314 

Marble  Faun,  see  Hawthorne. 
Marcellus,  Pope,  on  Palestrina's 

Papa?  Marcelli    305 

Mareschal,   Walter,  and  horse- 
shoes     254 

Margaret,  St.,  her  Book  of  the 

Gospels     233 

edited    by     Fr.    W.    Forbes- 

Leith    233 

how  identified   234 

loss  and  recovery  of 234 

price  paid  for 234 


Margaret,  St.,  Prof.  Westwood 
on    233 

Marie  Antoinette  Romances,  see 
Dumas. 

Marillac,  M.  de,  his  edition  of 
the  Imitation    329 

Mariner's  Chronicle  336 

Mark's,  Saint,  see  Saint  Mark's. 

Marriage,  Aztec  ceremonies. .  .  .  223 
Aztec     customs      and     cere- 
monies     212 

Aztec  laws   214 

on  Fridays  277 

Sir    Thomas    More's    remark 
on   168 

Marriage  a  la  Mode,  see  Ho- 
garth. 

Marriage  of  the  Arts,  see  Holy- 
day. 

Marseilles,   foundation  of 288 

Mary,  Queen  of  Scots,  in  The 
Abbot    352 

Mass,  parts  not  sung  by  priests 
or  choir   136 

Massinger,  Philip,  his  The  Guar- 
dian, indebtedness  to  Bid- 
pai     293 

Master  of  the  Rolls  Series  . .   11 
see  also  Early  Chronicles. 

Mather,  Cotton,  his  misdirected 
earnestness    357 

Matsys,  Quentin,  story  of 131 

Measure  for  Measure,  see  Shake- 
speare. 

Meaux,  Abbey  of,  see  Melsa. 

Meissen,  porcelain  factory  at..  128 

Melsa,  Monastery  of 34 

Mending,  miniatures  attributed 
to    229 

Memoirs,  tedious,  satire  on,  in 
The  Spectator 56 

Men,  duty  of 79 

Mendelssohn-Bartholdy,  Felix, 
in  Charles  Auchester 352 

Mendoza  collection,  see  Kings- 
borough. 

Menenius  Agrippa,  his  fable, 
Belly  and  the  Members  of 
the  Body   296 

Menisci,  source  of  belief  in 
horse-shoes    257 


380 


INDEX. 


Mercy,  absent  from  the   Ham- 
murabi Code  91 

Meusel,  on  Nuremberg  Chronicle  37 

Mexican  Antiquities 207 

Mexican   names,   pronunciation 

of    211 

Middle  Ages,  see  Lacroix. 
Migration  of  Fables,  see  Miiller. 
Milk,  cows',  not  known  to  Az- 
tecs     213 

Milton,  John,  earnestness  of.  .  .361 

his  Paradise  Lost 362 

editions  of    362 

Mirza,  Vision  of 57 

Missa  Papae  Marcelli,  see  Pales- 

trina. 
Mitford,  A.  B.,  his  Tales  of  Old 

Japan,  quoted 264 

Mithridates,  his  lack  of  horse- 
shoes      252 

Modern  Telemachus,  see  Yonge. 
Moliere,  J.  B.  P.,  his  Cheats  of 
Scapin,    drawn    from    Ter- 
ence      188 

Monastic  life,  symbolized  by  the 

oyster    26 

Monday,  unluckiness  of 277 

Monmouth,  see  Geoffrey  of. 
Moon,  Man  in  the,  earliest  ref- 
erence to    25 

More,  Sir  Thomas,  beatification 

of   172 

debt  of  English  prose  to.  .  .  .  170 

education  of    168 

friendship  with  Dean  Colet.  .168 
friendship  with  Erasmus. ...  168 
his    creation     of     the     word 

Utopia    171 

his  remark  on  marriage 168 

his  second  marriage 169 

his  selection  of  a  bride 168 

his  Utopia 166 

Craik,  Henry,  on 169 

editions  of 170 

trusts,      evils      of,      fore- 
shadowed in  167 

views  embodied  in 167 

works  inspired  by 166 

Holbein's  picture  of 172 

humor  of   169 

Johnson,  Dr.  Samuel,  on. .  .  .170 
persecuted  by  Henry  VIII..  .167 


More,    Sir    Thomas,    positions 

held    by 170 

public  veneration  of 172 

Morelli,  Giacomo,  on  Grimani's 

Breviary   227 

Morgan,  M.    de,    discoverer    of 

the  Hammurabi  code 90 

Morpurgo,    Dr.    Sal,  and    Gri- 
mani's Breviary   229 

Morris,  William,  his  Erewhon.166 
his    Defense     of     Guenevere, 
drawn  from  Morte  Darthur.  1 1 8 
Mortality,  see  Deaths. 
Morte  Darthur,    added    to    by 

Layamon    121 

added  to  by  Wace 120.  121 

Andrew  Lang's  essay  on....  117 
Ascham's    charge    of    immo- 
rality in    117 

bibliography  of,  C.  F.  Keary, 

on    H9n 

Caxton's  first  edition  of 115 

claims  of  Borron  and  Troyes 

disregarded    121n 

Dr.  Sommer's  edition 113 

gleaning  ground  for  poets.  .  .118 
growth    of    legend,    Richard 

Jones  on,  quoted 118n 

Holy    Grail,    history    of    the 

cup    121 

introduced  by  Map 121 

present  custodian  of 121 

in  Geoffrey  of  Monmouth.  ...120 
index  to   persons  and  places 

in   117 

influence  on  Bunyan 122 

Lancelot,  introduced  by  Map.  121 

true  to  nature 122 

legend  preserved  inArmorica, 

Wales  and  Cornwall 119 

portrayal  of  Henry  II 122 

Sir  Walter  Scott  on 117 

the  English   epic 118 

the   Round    Table,    preserved 

at  Winchester 120 

introduced   120 

Wynkyn  de  Worde's  edition.  116 
Morton,  Manor  of,  held  by  part 

payment  of  horse-shoes . .  .  253 
Mosaic  code,  its  difference  to  the 
Hammurabi  code 92 


INDEX. 


381 


Moses,  his  authorship  of  Penta- 
teuch disputed    323 

ignorant   of   the   Hammurabi 

code     92 

Motte,  De  la,  his  definition  of 

a  fable   287 

Mourning 259 

Arabian  customs   264 

assumed  by  Henry  VIII.  for 

Anne  Boleyn 268 

assumed    without      grief    by 

Louis  XI 267 

black-edged  paper,  use  of .  .  .  .271 
black  sealing  wax,  use  of .  .  .  .271 

Byzantine  customs    264 

Chinese  customs 262 

colours,  in  China 262 

in  France   266 

in  Spain   266 

in  various  countries    265 

Japanese    264 

Roman    263 

significance  of 266 

exaggeration  of   272 

extravagance   in    269 

Fijian  customs   265 

forbidden    by    James    I.,    for 

Prince  Henry    268 

graduation  of   268 

Greek  customs    263 

in  Bride  of  Lammermoor.  ...269 

Japanese  customs   264 

Jewish  customs    261 

Lycian  disapprobation  of.... 264 
Numa  Pompilius'  edict  on.  .  .263 

Persian  customs 265 

Pope  on   268 

Roman  customs   263 

Sandwich  Island  customs ....  265 

Syrian  customs   265 

see  also  Funerals. 
Much   Ado   aboiit  Nothing,   see 

Shakespeare. 
Miihlbach,  Louise,  her  Andreas 

Hofer    352 

Mules,   shoes    for,    see    Horse- 
shoes. 
Miiller,   Max,   his  Migration   of 

Fables    299 

quoted    292 

Music,  forbidden  at  Haver  ford 
College   Ill 


Myrrour,  see  Caxton. 

Mythology,  on  visiting  cards.. 243 

NAILS,    for   fastening   horse- 
shoes, see  Horse-shoes. 

finger,  cutting  of 281 

Del  Rio  on  cutting  of 281 

Napoleon  I.,  his  use  of  a  play- 
ing card   242 

Napoleoniana,  study  of,  induced 
by  Shadow  of  the  Sword .  .    32 
by  Les  Miserables   32 

Nasturtium,    application   of    in 
cases  of  baldness   20 

Natural  History,  see  Neckam. 
see  also  Pliny. 

Neapolitans,     Friday    supersti- 
tions of 277 

Neckam,  Alexander,  his  Natural 

History,  botany  in 45 

pun  on  name  of 23 

works  of    23 

works   to   consult   in   connec- 
tion with   24 

Nennius    119 

Nero,     his     mules     shod     with 
silver    249 

Netter,  Thomas,    Fasciculi,   as- 
cribed to 35n 

New  Atlantis,  see  Bacon. 

New  Voyage,  see  Defoe. 

Newberry,     John,     Goldsmith's 

comment  on   84 

his  advertising  devices 84 

original   of   Dr.   Primrose   in 
Vicar  of  Wakefield 84 

Newspapers,  created  by  the  es- 
sayists        53 

Newton,  Isaac,  visiting  cards  of. 2  10 

Nezahualcoyotl,    King,    life    of, 
similar  to  King  David's.. 214 

Nezahualpilli,  King,  life  of .  .  .  .215 

Noah,  the  Aztec  Cox-Cox 214 

No-Poperv   Riots,    in    Barnaby 
Rudge     352 

Nonnes      Preestes      Tale,      see 
Chaucer. 

Nord,   Comtesse    du,    porcelain 
table  of 131 

Northampton,  City  of,  held  by 
payment  of  horse-shoes.  ...253 


382 


INDEX. 


Northumberland    family,  visit- 
ing cards  of 240 

Nose,   length   of,   undoing  of   a 

princess    27 

ornament,      Aztec,      denoting 
chieftainship   223 

Novel,   taken  from  old   chroni- 
cles       35 

Novels,  see  Fiction. 

Noyes,    Rev.,    his    misdirected 
earnestness    357 

Numa    Pompilius,  his    edict  on 
mourning     263 

Nunez,    Bishop,    on    origin    of 
Aztecs  213 

Nuremberg    Chronicle,     Dibdin 

on    37 

insufficiently   indexed    14n 

Meusel  on   37 

source     of       Southey's     Old 
woman  of  Berkeley 38 

Nursery  rhymes,  history  in.  .  .  .      7 

Nuttall  Codex,  The 219 

size  and  character 221 

Nuttall,  Zelia,  editress  of  Nut- 
tall  Codex   221 

OAKHAM,  Seat  of  Earl  Fer- 
rers, horse-shoes  levied  at.253 

Observer,  The   60 

Oceana,  see  Harrington. 

Of  the  Imitation  of  Christ.  . . 

147,  321 
see  also  Kempis. 

Offices.  Book  of,  manuscript.  ..  138 

Oil,  illuminating,  not  known  to 
Aztecs    213 

Old   and   New   Testaments,   see 
History  of. 

Old  Woman  and  her  Cats,  see 
Gay. 

Old   Woman    of    Berkeley,   see 
Southey. 

Ongania,   Ferdinand,   his  Basil- 
ica di  San  Marco 97 

Opus  Minns,  see  Bacon. 

Opus  Tertium,  see  Bacon. 

Orbicularis,   cure   for   stomach- 
ache and  baldness 20 

Oriental    Carpets    69 

Orseoli    Doge    Pietro,    disposal 
of  his  bones    102 


Orseoli  Doge  Pietro,  his  res- 
toration of  St.  Mark's, 
Venice    101 

Our  Race,  see  Totten. 

Overbury,  Sir  Thomas,  on  Fri- 
day dreams   276 

Oxford,  Lord,  Robinson  Crusoe 
ascribed  to   160 

Oyster,  symbolical  of  monastic 
life    25 

P\GAN,  Mattio,  engraving  by.100 
Paine,  John,  backer  of  The 
Rambler   57 

Pala    d'Oro,  of    Saint    Mark's, 

Venice    99 

restorations  of 100 

Palestrina,  Igino  307 

Palestrina,  P.  da,  his  Assumpta 

est    Maria 308 

his     Missa     Papa?    Marcelli, 

Baini  on 305 

Parvi   on    305 

Pember  on   305 

work  of   307 

Palestbina's  Music 303 

Palm  Sunday  procession,  of  the 
Doge  in  Venice 100 

Pantchatantra 291 

Papa?  Marcelli,  Missa,  see  Pales- 
trina. 

Paper,  black-edged,  iised  in 
mourning   271 

Paradise  Lost,  see  Milton. 

Paris,  Paulin,  on  Calenius' 
manuscript    120 

Parsley  sown  on  Good  Friday. .283 

Parvi,  and  the  Missa  Papa? 
Marcelli    305 

Pascal,  Blaise,  his  definition  of 
earnestness    358 

Paston,  John,  his  funeral 269 

Paston  Letters    269 

Paul.  St.,  his  Epistle  to  the 
Hebrews,  authorship  dis- 
puted     323 

Pecock,  Reginald,  his  Repressor, 
on  the  Lollards 27 

Pember,  E.  H.,  on  the  Missa 
Papa?  Marcelli    305 

Penology,  studv  of  induced  by 
His'  Natural  Life 32 


INDEX. 


383 


Pentateuch     of     Printing,    see 

Blades. 
Perdicaris  case,  parallel  to .  ...  335 
Permanence,  how  attained,  see 

Earnestness. 
Persia,  Shah  of,  Friday  super- 
stitions   277 

Persian  mourning  customs 265 

Persilis    and    Sigismunda,    see 
Cervantes. 

Pha?drus     297 

his  Fables    297 

drawn  from  JEso-p 297 

Phelps,  Samuel,  his  restoration 

of  Shakespeare 361 

Philadelphia   Free  Library   of, 

The,  Carnegie  gift 341 

growth  of   31,  341 

its   collection    of    Liturgical 

Manuscripts    .  .135 

its    fac-simile    of    Grimani's 

Breviary    ... 227 

its  Mexican  fac-similes 217 

lectures   delivered  by 342 

Wanamaker,    John,    his    gift 

to    341 

Widener,  P.  A.  B.,  his  gift  to.341 
Philadelphia     Library      (Com- 
pany), founded  by  Frank- 
lin    176 

Pie,  at  Haverford  College 110 

Pilate,  his  use  of  the  Grail. .  .  .  121 

Pilgrim's  Progress,  The 150 

see  also  Bunyan. 
Piranesi,  the  elder,  admired  by 

Coleridge    67 

De  Quincey,  on 67 

his  Laocoon   group 69 

his  .plates  of  Trajan's  column  68 

Piranesi,  the  younger 67 

Pisans,  receive  the  Grail  from 

Genoese    121 

Playing     cards,     first     visiting 

cards     239 

introduced  from  the  East. . .  46 
substituted  for  royal  commis- 
sion     244 

use  of  by  Napoleon  1 242 

used    to    identify    ropes    on 

board  ship   243 

Plea  fob  Free  Libraries,  A . .  337 


Pliny,  the  elder,    his    literary 

methods    312 

his  Natural  History,  botany  in    45 

quoted     249 

Pliny,  the  younger,  his  friend- 
ship with  Tacitus 179 

Poe,  E.  A.,  on  Robinson  Crusoe.  159 

Poem,  longest  English 313 

Polyglot  Psalter,  A 71 

Pompadour,  Mme.  de,  her  paint- 
ing of  porcelain 130 

her  porcelain  flowers 131 

interest   in    porcelain   manu- 
facture     130 

Pope,   Abby    E.,    her    copy   of 

Morte  Darthur 116 

Pope,  Alexander,  in  Levereux. .  350 

on  mourning 268 

Poppaea,   her  beasts   shod   with 

gold 249 

Porcelain,    Dresden,    made    at 

Meissen  128 

introduced  from    China    into 

Europe  by  Venetians 127 

kaolin  for,  discovered 128 

Limoges,  date  of  first  manu- 
facture    128 

Sevres 66 

carriage  of  Mile.  Beaupre.129 

collectors  of 66 

dates  of  styles   ..128 

factory  acquired  by  Louis 

XV 130 

flowers   of    131 

fraudulent   129 

manufacture  encouraged  by 

Mme.  de  Pompadour  ....  130 
manufacture  of,  under  royal 

patronage    129 

old,  dates  of 128 

painted  by  Mme.  de  Pom- 
padour     130 

presented  to  Louis  XVIII.. 129 
service    of,     belonging    to 

Catherine  II 131 

table   of  the   Comtesse   du 

Nord    131 

uses  to  which  put 129 

Porpora,  Niccola,  in  Consuelo..352 
Porter,     Jane,      her     Scottish 
Chiefs     352 


384 


INDEX. 


Portsmouth,  origin  of  name ...   36 
Portugal,   establishment  of   In- 
quisition in   135 

pictorial  art  of 135 

Preachers,  satire  on 81 

Premiums  given  with  books ....   85 
Prescott,   W.   H.,   his   indebted- 
ness to  the  Mendoza  collec- 
tion   212 

Primrose,  Dr.,  original  of 84 

Printing,  Commencement  of,  see 

Anfange. 
Procession     of     the     Doge,     of 

Venice,  on  Palm  Sunday .  .  100 
Providence  Displayed,   see   Sel- 
kirk. 

Psalter,  A  Polyglot 71 

Psalterium,  manuscript    142 

Psyche,  longest  English  poem. 313 

Pun,  on  name  of  Neckam 23 

Puritanism,  effect  on  children .  .    83 

QUACK  medicines,  Good  Fri- 
day bread    283 

remedies    19 

Quakers,  founders  of  Haverford 

College    108 

Querard,  M.,  his  charge  against 
Dumas    314 

RAMBLER,  The   57 
Redemption,  Aztec  version. 214 

Reflections,  quoted 256 

Reichenbach,   Dr.,   his   life   and 

will   42 

Reichenbachia,  see  Sander. 
Relics,  of  Doge  Orseoli,  custody 

of   102 

Renan,    Ernest,    on    authorship 

of  the  Imitation 327 

Repressor,  see  Peoock. 
Review,  The,  see  Defoe. 
Rhetoric,  Caxton's  definition  of.  82 
Richelieu,  Cardinal,  his  edition 

of  the  Imitation 328 

Rienzi,  see  Bulwer-Lytton. 
Rienzi,  Tribune,   in  Rienzi ....  352 
Rio,  see  Del  Rio. 
Rivals,  see  Davenant. 

Robinson  Crusoe    155 

see  also  Defoe. 
Romance,  limitations  of  old... 164 


Romans,   horse-shoes   not   com- 
mon amongst    251 

mourning  customs  of 263 

Rome,      described      in     Marble 
Faun     349 

Romola,  see  Eliot. 

Round     Table,      see     Morte 
Darthur. 

Rousseau,    J.    J.,    on    Robinson 
Crusoe   159 

Ruskin,    John,     on     Lubbock's 

Hundred  Books 173 

on  Utopianism   171 

Russell,  W.  P.,  his  Verbotomy, 

quoted    82 

Russians,  their  shoes  for  dogs.. 252 

SAILORS,  their  Friday  super- 
stitions     279 

Saint    Margaret's     Book    of 

the  Gospels    231 

Saint  Mark's,  Venice  95 

injured  by  fire  and  pillage..  101 

Pala  d'Oro   99 

restored     by      Doge      Pietro 

Orseoli    101 

Saint-Pierre,  B.  de,  his  literary 

methods    313 

Saintsbury,  Prof.,  his  Flourish- 
ing of  Romance,  quoted..  121n 
Salvini,    Tomaso,     on     earnest- 
ness      362 

Sanctuary,  violation  of  privilege 

of    101 

Sancturale,   manuscript    137 

Sand.  George,  her  Consuelo.  ...352 
Sander.  Frederick,  his  Reichen- 
bachia       42 

Sandwich      Islands,      mourning 

customs    265 

Savonarola,  in  Romola 350 

Sawny  the  Scot,  see  Lacy. 
Scarlet  Letter,  see  Hawthorne. 
Schole  Master,  see  Aschaui. 
School-books,  in  monastic  days.  78 

School-extension  lectures 342 

Schools,  caning  in 80 

corporal  punishment  in 81 

in  days  of  Elizabeth 79 

Scott,  Sir  Walter,  his  Abbot.  .  .352 
his   Bride     of    Lammermoor, 
mourning  in   269 


INDEX. 


;),s;> 


Scott,    Sir    Walter,    his    Kenil- 

worth    352 

his  Lady  of  the  Lake 352 

his  literary  prolificness 313 

oil  Cervantes    163 

on  Morte  Darthur 117 

on  Robinson  Crusoe 155 

Scottish  Chiefs,  see  Porter. 
Sealing-wax,     black,      used     in 

mourning 271 

Sedgwick,      H.      D.,      on      Don 

Quixote    164 

Self  Help,  see  Smiles. 
Selkirk.   Alexander,   his  adven- 
tures     157n 

his  Providence  Displayed.  .  .  .157 
not     original      of     Robinson 

Crusoe    157 

Sevres  Porcelain   125 

see  also  Porcelain. 
Sevres,    Soft    Porcelain    of,   see 

Gamier. 
Shadow  of  the  Sword,  see  Buch- 
anan. 
Shah  Nameh,  see  Firdausi. 
Shakespeare,   William,  earnest- 
ness  of    360 

his  authorship  disputed 323 

his    Hamlet,    Dumas'    ending 

to     315 

his  Julius  Caesar  adapted.  .361n 

his  King  Lear,  quoted 255 

his  Macbeth  adapted 361 

his      Measure    for    Measure, 

adapted    360 

his  Much  Ado  about  Nothing, 

adapted    360 

his  plays,  mutilation  of 360 

restored       by     Kean     and 

Phelps     361 

his'    Taming    of  the    Shrew, 

adapted    361 

his  Tempest,  adapted 361 

his     Two     Noble     Kinsmen, 

adapted    361n 

Sheba.  Queen  of,  presented  with 

the  Grail   121 

Sheppard,   E.    M.,   her   Charles 

Auchester    352 

Shoemaker  and  ape,  story  of . .   26 
Shoes,   for    mules,    see    Horse- 
shoes. 

25 


Shoes,     for     mules,     see  also 
Asses,  shoes  for. 
see  also  Camels,  shoes  for. 
see  also  Dogs,   shoes   for. 
see  also  Horse-shoes. 

Silver,  horse-shoes  of 249 

Six  "Greatest  Books"   145 

Smiles.  Samuel,  his  Self  Help..359 

on   Herschel    359 

Smyth,    A.    H.,    his    edition    of 

Franklin   176n 

Socrates,    his    verse     form     of 

^sop    297 

Soft   Porcelain   of    Sevres,    see 

Gamier. 
Solitary  Summer,  see  Arnim. 
Solomon,  original  owner  of  the 

Grail    121 

Sommer,  Dr.  H.  0.,  his  edition 

of  Morte  Darthur 113 

Sotheran,    E.    H.,    publisher   of 

Reichenbachia    42 

Southey,    Robert,    his    literary 

methods     312 

his  Old  Woman  of  Berkeley, 

source  of    38 

Spaniards,  their  Friday  super- 
stitions .  .  .  r 277 

Spanish  mourning  colours 266 

Spectator,  The    56 

Coverley,   Sir   Roger   de,   au- 
thors of    56 

reason  of  his  death 56 

Thackeray's  comment  on .  .   56 
satire  on  tedious  memoirs ...  56 

Vision  of  Mirza 57 

Spencer,  Earl,  his  copy  of  Morte 

Darthur    . 115 

location  of  his  collection.  ...  116 
Spenser,    Edmund,    his    Faerie 
Queene,  and  MorteDarthur.118 

Spineto,  Marquis   212 

Square  Friend,  The 108 

Steele,    Sir   Richard,    his    reck- 
lessness      54 

his  service  to  journalism.  ...   54 

his  Tatler 54 

in  Devereux 55.  350 

in  Henry  Esmond 56 

Stencils,     manuscript    executed 
with    136 


386 


INDEX. 


Stephens.    J.   L.,   his    Incidents 

of  Travel    216 

his  Travels    216 

Stesichorus,  his  fable  Horse 
and  the   Stag 296 

Stomach-ache,  cure  for 283 

orbicularis,  a  cure  for 20 

Stonesfield,  pretty  funeral  cus- 
tom    271 

Suetonius,  quoted   249 

Sutherland,  W.,  his  Handbook 
of  Alpine  flowers  45 

Swift,  Dean,  in  Devereux 350 

Swinburne,  Algernon,  his  Trys- 
tram  of  Lyonesse,  source 
of    118 

Syrian  mourning  customs 265 

TACITUS,  Fac-similes  of 179 

1       his  Annals,  Dibdin,  T.  F., 

on    180 

edited  by  Beroaldo 180 

his  friendship  with  Pliny...  179 

his  proenomen    180 

Medicean  codices  of 179 

scope  of 179 

Taffie  was  a  Welshman,  his- 
torical significance  of 8 

Tale  of  Two  Cities,  see  Dickens. 
Tales   of    Old   Japan,    see   Mit- 

ford. 
Taming    of     the      Shrew,      see 
Shakespeare. 

Tartary,  horse-shoes  in 251 

Tatler,  The,  criticism  of  biblio- 
maniacs       55 

designed  by  Steele 54 

Tom  Folio  on 55 

Taylor,   publisher   of   Robinson 

Crusoe    160 

Tea  Te phi,  daughter  ofZedekiah     7 
Tears,  easily    shed   by  Eastern 

peoples    262 

Telescope,   dispute  as  to  Aztec 

knowledge  of   216 

Tempest,  The,  see  Shakespeare. 

Ten  Lost  Tribes,  The 1 

Anglo  Saxons  descended  from     4 

Aztecs  descended  from 213 

see  also  Totten. 
Ten   Years   Later,   see   Dumas. 


Tennyson.    Lord,   his   Idylls    of 

the  King   118 

Terence,  fac-similes  of 185 

his  authorship  questioned  ...  187 
his  Heauton-timoroumenos.  .  188 
his  manuscripts,  illustrations 

in     185 

his  Phormio  illustrations  to.  188 
his  works,    debt    of    modem 

dramatists  to    187 

Mme.  Dacier  on   187 

portrait   of    186 

Text  of  the  Bible,  The 189 

Thackeray,    W.   M.,   his   Henry 
Esmond,   introduces    Steele 

and  Addison    56 

on   Dumas    319 

on  Sir  Roger  de  Coverley.  ...    54 
Thecla,   St.,    alleged    scribe    of 

Codex  Alexandrinus    194 

Thessalonians.  first  to  use  iron 

horse-shoes     252 

Thomas,  St.,  in  Anahuac 214 

tradition       of.       similar      to 

Elijah    214 

Thomson,    James,    his    Liberty, 

on  Laocoon  group 69 

Thornton,  Bonnell,  joint  editor 

of  The  Connoisseur 59 

Three  Musketeers 318,  351 

Thymage,   see  Caxton. 
Tinted  Venus,  see  Anstey. 
Tischendorf,     Constantine,     his 
discovery  of  Codex  Sinaiti- 

cus     200 

Tonson,     Jacob,     publisher    of 

Milton    362 

quarrel  of    57 

Totten,  C.  A.  L.,  his  Our  Race.     3 
Anglo-Saxons       the       Lost 

Tribes  4 

Lost     Tribes     in     nursery 

rhymes   7 

wanderings   of    4 

Toxophilus,  see  Ascham. 

Trajan,  column  of 68 

Travels  in  Central  America,  see 

Stephens. 
Tristram  and  Iseult.see  Arnold. 
Trollope,  Anthony,  his  literary 
methods    312 


INDEX. 


387 


Troyes,  Chrestien  de,  his 
claims  not  reconcilable  with 
Map's    121n 

Trusts,  declaimed  against  in 
Utopia    167 

Tiystram  of  Lyonesae,  see 
Swinburne. 

Twelve-Ollin,  Aztec  hero 222 

Twenty  Years  After 318,  351 

Twice  Told  Tales,  see  Haw- 
thorne. 

Two  Noble  Kinsmen,  see  Shake- 
speare. 

Types,  movable,  reputed  in- 
ventor of   48 

Typographical  Antiquities 77 

ULYSSES,    the    inventor    of 
chess    26 

Uncial   writing,   described 193 

University -extension  lectures. .  .  342 
Uranus,  discovered  by  Herschel.359 

Utopia   166 

see  also  More. 

Utopian  works   166 

Utopianism,    Burton,    Richard, 

on 171 

Ruskin,  John,  on 171 

VALUE  of  Reading  Fiction, 
The    343 

Van  Diemen's  Land,  penal  con- 
dition of  in  His  Natural 
Life    32 

Vatican,  its  Codex  Vaticanus.  .191 

Vega,  Lope  de,  his  literary  pro- 
lificness    313 

Vegetius,  quoted   250 

Venables,   Canon    Edmund,    on 

Holy  War 151 

on  Pilgrim's  Progress 151 

Venetians,  introducers  of  porce- 
lain into  Europe 127 

Venice,  Palm  Sunday  procession 

of  the   Doge 100 

St.  Mark's,  see  Saint  Mark's. 

Verbotomy,  see  Russell. 

Vergil,  Polydore,  on  Geoffrey  of 
Monmouth    119 

Verne,  Jules,  his  Hector  Serva- 
dac,  comets  in 350 


Vespasian,  delayed  by  horse- 
shoes   252 

Vicar  of    Wakefield,    see  Gold- 
smith. 
Vicomte  de  Bragelonne.  ..  .318,  351 
Vida  y  Hechos,  see  Columbus. 
Vidal,  Sr.  Domingo  and  brother, 
editors  of    Flora    de    Fili- 

pinas    45 

Vincennes,  porcelain  manufac- 
ture at  130 

Virgil,  his  iEneid,  on  Laocoon 

group    69 

Vision  of  Mirza 57 

Visiting  Cards   237 

a  modern  invention 239 

Adam  Bartsch's   242 

busts  on   243 

Canova's     241 

Casanova's  designs  for 242 

Comtesses  de  Windischgratz's.243 

Count  Drakslaw's   243 

dogs  on    242 

German   243 

in   Hogarth's   Marriage  a  la 

Mode    240 

Isaac  Newton's   240 

Italian 243 

landscapes  on   242 

messages  on    239 

mythological  subjects  on ...  .  243 
Northumberland  family's  .  .  .  240 
originally  worn  playing  cards. 239 

the  Miss  Berrys' 241 

verses   on    241 

Votan,  founder  of  Aztec  nation.213 
present  at  Tower  of  Babel. .  .213 
Vries,   Dr.   S.   G.   de,   editor   of 
Grimani's  Breviary 227 

WACE,  his  History  of  the 
Britons,  Arthurian 
legends  in 120,  121 

Wales,  Arthurian  legends  in.  .  .119 

Wallace,  William,  in  Scottish 
Chiefs  352 

Walpole,  Robert,  defended  by 
the  Miss  Berrys 242 

Wanamaker.  John,  and  The 
Free  Library  of  Philadel- 
phia     341 


388 


INDEX. 


Warren,  Samuel,  speed  of  com- 
position     313 

Waterwort,  specific  for  bald- 
headed  suitors 19 

specific  for  ladies'  beauty.  ...    19 

Watts,  Dr.,  error  falsely  at- 
tributed to 84 

Wesley,  Samuel,  his  History  of 
the  Old  and  New  Testament 
in  verse 83 

Westwood,  Prof.,  on  St.  Mar- 
garet's Book  of  the  Gospels.233 

Wheatley,  L.  A.,  on  authorship 
of  the  Imitation 325 

White  Wings,  see  Black. 

Whole  Duty  of  Man 149 

Widener,  P.  A.  B.,  and  The 
Free  Library  of  Philadel- 
phia     341 

Wight,  see  Isle  of  Wight. 

William   of  Malmesbury 120 

William,  the  Conqueror,  his  in- 
troduction of  horse-shoes 
into  England   253 

Williams,  his  Window  Garden- 
ing       45 

Winchester,  theRound  Table  at.120 

Windischgratz,  Comtesses  de, 
visiting  cards  of 243 

Window  Gardening,  see  Wil- 
liams. 

Wine,  at  funerals 269 


Witchcraft,  stupidity  about  its 
suppression     357 

Witches,  activity  on  Good  Fri- 
day     275 

charms  against 275 

horse  -  shoes     protection 

against    256 

Johnson,     Margaret,     confes- 
sion of   275 

Witts,  de,  see  De  Witts. 

Women,  duty  of  79 

Women  Pleased,  see  Beaumont 
and  Fletcher. 

Woodcuts,  as  portraits  of  vari- 
ous persons   37 

Worde,  Wynkyn  de,  his  edition 
of  Morte  Darthur 116 

World,  The   58 

Wotan,  see  Votan. 

Wren,  the  king  of  birds 25 

Wyclif's    Fasciculi,    see    Fasci- 
culi. 

Y  ONGE,  C.  M.,  her    literary 

I       methods    312 

her  Modern  Telemachus, 
source  of   336 

ZAIN,    Doge    Pietro.    restorer 
of  the  Pala  d'Oro 100 

Zenophon,  quoted    250 

Zouche,    Lord,      his      Mexican 
Codex   221 


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